


Pole Star

by davantastic, seraphic_gate, Shippy-Things (seraphic_gate)



Category: Tales of Zestiria
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Bets & Wagers, Domestic Fluff, First Dates, First Kiss, First Meetings, First Time, Friends to Lovers, Gift Exchange, Halloween Costumes, Holidays, M/M, Romance, Sickfic, Slow Burn, Snowball Fight, sex scenes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-19
Updated: 2018-04-26
Packaged: 2018-06-03 05:04:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 54,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6597838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/davantastic/pseuds/davantastic, https://archiveofourown.org/users/seraphic_gate/pseuds/seraphic_gate, https://archiveofourown.org/users/seraphic_gate/pseuds/Shippy-Things
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After two years at an unimpressive but affordable community college, Mikleo starts his new academic career at an esteemed university.  Broke as a college student and working at a coffee place on campus, he meets his brilliant academic match, Sorey.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. See You Friday

**Author's Note:**

> This is a collaboration between myself and Davantastic. It started as sort of a stress-relief RP and eventually got really long. We both love the characters and how they developed into their own. I have rewritten the narrative into a prose format, with some scenes that are either paired down or expanded to deal with the inevitable pacing issues that are present in RP. Davantastic is proofing and advising the re-write as well, so it's a project by both of us. 
> 
> About the explicit rating: the fic is a slow burn romance, sex scenes don't start to appear until Chapter 15.

Mikleo never wore his nice clothes to work because they'd get stained within the hour if he did. So there he was in a black t-shirt and old jeans wearing his stupid visor cap and apron, standing behind the register. 

The Ladylake Coffee shop located in the food court of the college's student center was always busiest in the morning with students and staff alike standing in line. His supervisor, Edna, wouldn't have taken a break other than it was mandated by corporate. He'd only been working there a week, but he felt confident that he could handle this. He already knew all the drinks by heart. 

The hardest part was forcing himself to smile. He pulled his face into a grimace. It was only September, but he thought about being able to buy his mother something nice for Christmas for once, and that made it possible for him to do this terrible job. 

“Hello, how are you, what can I get started for you today?” he asked the first customer in line, with his creepy trying-too-hard smile. 

The young man just smiles back at him, although his is genuine and comforting. He looked perplexed by the menu for the moment. Mikleo was not annoyed in the least by this, but rather found it a nice moment to take a breath. "Iced coffee, vanilla flavored, caramel and whipped cream on top!" 

Eye contact was another thing Mikleo found himself challenged by. He forced himself to look into the customer's eyes and found a cute face to match the sugary drink he'd ordered. Brunet and green-eyed, this guy could have turned anyone's head. Mikleo smiled again, and this time he didn't have to try so hard. The job did have its up sides. 

“No problem. That'll be $3.19. Can I get your name?” 

"Sorey," he said, and leaned onto the counter as he handed Mikleo cash for his purchase, studying his face. "You're new to me," he said, and his eyes darted around until they found his name tag. "You've got a nice name, too." 

Mikleo was counting his change, and had to start over. How was he supposed to process this? Was this guy hitting on him? Would an honestly attractive guy like that hit on him? “I-I just transferred this semester from a community college, I've only been working here for a week.” He suddenly remembered his task. “I'm sorry, how do you spell that name?” 

"S-o-r-e-y," he spelled out, and smiled brightly. "Welcome to Ladylake, then!" He stopped leaning on the counter and settled back on his feet, but his eyes kept wandering over Mikleo. "What's your major?" 

“Forensic Anthropology,” Mikleo replied, glancing up at him and then back down to the cup he was writing Sorey's name on. Since he was the only one in the station for the moment, he began to make Sorey's drink. He got the cold coffee from the fridge and put the flavors that Sorey asked for in it before adding the ice to make sure it wouldn't melt right away. “How about you?” He knew he wasn't very good at small talk, but that warm smile on Sorey's face made it a little easier.

"Archeology," Sorey said. He sounded so easy-going. Mikleo wasn't even nervous that he kept watching while he made the drink. "Yours sounds interesting. That's identifying bodies, right?" 

Mikleo laughed to himself a little as he was trying add the whip to the top of Sorey's drink. Very rarely would anyone say “identifying bodies” to him so glibly and like it's really fascinating, and not just creepy. “Well, mostly they're not bodies anymore. Skeletons and such. But yeah, human remains. It would be great if I could get a gig with the university and assist historical research but, odds are I'll be doing something a little more gross and depressing.”

The whip cream just wouldn't spray no matter how many times he tried. He could feel the other customers getting ansty behind him, and maybe that's why he didn't think to just get another can from the back fridge. Instead, he took a butter knife to the cap to see if he could clear the obstruction.

The whip cream explodes on him. Yep, clothes ruined within the first hour.

“Do you need help?" Sorey offered. 

Mikleo wondered if he'd jump behind the table for him and start making up drinks if he asked, and wiped a hand across his face to try to rub it away. But his hands were covered to, it wasn't very effective. “I'm fine.” 

"At least let me help you clean up?”

Mikleo was speechless, not accustomed to this sort of sudden kindness from a stranger. It was at this moment that Edna returned from her break. The petite blonde woman's eyes went wide at the sight of the mess. “Meebo, just go to your break now!” She turned and smiled sweetly to the customers in line. “Please excuse us, he's new.”

Mikleo pushed Mikleo of the station still covered in whip and started running the whole station like she was three people all by herself. Mikleo was still holding Sorey's coffee. He extended it to him. “Um, well, I think some of it got in there at least,” he said.

“It's all right, it's good enough for me.” Sorey set the coffee on one of the nearby tables and turned his attention to Mikleo. He took the cloth from Mikleo's apron pocket and dabbed at the spots on his shirt "Might need some water on these," he said, unable to remove the stains. "Or do you have time to go home and change?" 

Mikleo stood there, paralyzed. This boy was so nice, carefully tending to him. He found his wits and drew a step back. “Thank you,” he said, taking the cloth back. “I don't have enough time, but it's okay. These are my junk clothes.” He scratched his cheek and his eyes darted between Sorey and the empty space beside him. “I would like to sit for a minute,” he said in a small voice. “Would you sit with me? I'd be interested to see what your classes are like. We might even have some of the same subjects.” 

“Sure,” Sorey said with another smile, and gave him a big pat on the back.

Mikleo hoped he'd chalked his nervous nature up to post-whip-explosion jitters. They sat at the nearby table and Sorey took a sip of his coffee. Mikleo cringed, but Sorey hadn't spit it out or anything, it must have been okay. And he hadn't said no, or given him a weird look, or anything that normally happens when he tries to warm up to people. 

He pulled his schedule out of his back pocket. “I haven't been to the Digital Processing 3D Data class yet, it starts on Friday. Have you taken that? I heard this campus has all the best equipment. Even an MRI machine right there where you can use it.” He hoped he wasn't sounding too much like an idiot talking about stuff so excitedly. He'd never had access to such a thing at his tiny community college, and it was so exciting. 

Sorey set his arms on the table and leaned forward. "I have that class," he said in a cheery voice. He smiled again. "Friday at 1, right?" 

“That's when it is all right,” Mikleo answered, and then kicked himself because that was a really weird way to say it. Sorey's smile was kind of frazzling his brain a little. What was this anyway? Why was he acting like such a dope? “I bet archeology is a lot more history-oriented,” he said, trying to move on from the class they'd be sharing. “I don't get as much of that in my major.” He laughed awkwardly to fill silence. “So, why do you want to become an archeologist?”

"Because I love figuring out how people used to work," Sorey said. with another bright grin. "Why they did the things they did. I love the remains of old cultures. Exploring what was left behind. I want to do that." 

Hearing Sorey talk with such enthusiasm about his interests kindled a little part of Mikleo’s spirit that he thought had died at some point in the last two years. He smiled warmly. “You sound like you really love it with all your heart.”

I do.” He wrapped his hands around his coffee cup and studied Mikleo, as if trying to figure out how he works. "We should meet up again sometime.”

Mikleo blinked his eyes twice, failing to respond immediately. He’d never had any friends, and to connect with somebody so fast was overwhelming. “I am sure we’ll see each other on Friday in class but um.” He didn’t know what to do. Should he ask for his phone number? Should he ask him to meet somewhere later? What is he supposed to do in this situation? He felt his cheeks get hot which he knew meant other people could see him blushing, and quickly moved to pass the decision. “What did you have in mind?” 

"Let's do something after class, then.”. His voice was gentle, but he still wore a smile. "We don't really have to do anything, we could just hang out." 

“Hang out,” Mikleo repeated. That didn't sound like a date or anything. He could do this. He took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly. “Sounds good.” 

“Great!”

That smile again, Mikleo couldn't look at it for too long without feeling he might end up transported magically to another place. 

He didn't get to. Edna was calling him. “Hey Meebo, break’s up!” 

He stood and tied the apron back around his waist. “Duty calls,” he said. 

Sorey stood, too. “Seeya.”

Mikleo watched him leave, off to class or maybe to help other baristas in need. It felt easier to smile for the rest of the day.


	2. It's (Not) a Date!

Sorey found the classroom early. For one thing, sometimes it was hard to find the right room on the first day, and he didn't want to miss any of his classes. But, it also would hopefully give him a chance to catch up with the boy from the coffee shop.

 

Normally he would only wear whatever was comfortable, but today he felt like going with something a little nicer. He was still wearing his sneakers, but with slacks and a button-down shirt. Rose and Alisha had been able to tell he was dressing up for somebody, but he found himself unable to respond to their teasing. He had no idea why he wanted to look special for this boy he'd only just met. He just knew he wanted to present his best self.

 

Upon arriving, he was glad that he had made that decision. Mikleo was already there, having seated himself, and he appeared absolutely transformed. He wore a sharp blazer over a lavender dress shirt and herringbone slacks with really adorable two-tone shoes. His hair was parted differently, bangs swept out of his face, and he was wearing thick-rimmed glasses.

 

The seats were lined up two by two at tables stacked with computer equipment. And wouldn't you know, the seat next to Mikleo was still available. He took off his backpack and slid into it with a smile on his face. “Hey,” he said. “You look different.”

 

Mikleo's laugh had a sarcastic bite to it in response. “Ha, well, I hope you didn’t think I wear an apron and hat everywhere.” His posture was different too, he seemed so confident. Maybe he'd just been stressed out when they met before.

 

"No, but I didn't expect someone so stylish either." He studied Mikleo up and down a few times. He wasn't used to thinking guys were pretty, but this was definitely a pretty person. He found it hard not to look at him. "The glasses are cute, too."

 

Then, just as Sorey thought maybe he hadn't met the real Mikleo that day, the stuttering and blushing barista came back. “Th-thank you,” Mikleo stammered, pushing his glasses up on his face. “I usually wear contacts at work, but glasses are more comfortable for school, so...”

 

He wasn't sure what he had said to make Mikleo suddenly anxious, but he wasn't allowed much time to think about it before their instructor came into the room and began to set up her presentation.

 

“Looks like our instructor is a young woman,” Mikleo said. “That’s pretty rare for this field. I bet she’s an interesting person, you think?”

 

"I bet she is.” Although, he found Mikleo much more interesting and wanted to keep talking about him. His rapt attention seemed to be making Mikleo a bit edgey though, so he went along with the change of subject and pulled his eyes away. "How old do you think she is? She looks kind of young."

 

“Thirties at latest I’d say. Although, it’s probably not a good idea to ask her.” His air of confidence returned to him once Sorey's focus was elsewhere. He straightened up in his chair, and looked at Sorey in the face again. “The instructors at my old school were all old burn-outs, and the equipment was out of date too, so I hope I can keep up.”

 

"I'm sure you can, but we can always study together if you get overwhelmed." Sorey liked the idea of that. Studying with the new guy? It'd be much more fun than studying alone. His other friends had a hard time keeping up with his studies. Rose always gave up fifteen minutes in. But Mikleo seemed up to the task.

 

“Sure, I’m usually at the library, anyway.” Mikleo crossed his legs and lifted his chin up, with a haughty posture that came off a lot cuter than he'd probably intended. “I have never ranked any less than the top of my class. I’m sure it’ll be much more challenging here, but I’m glad for it. I came here to finish my degree because I want to be challenged, you know?”

 

"Many here ranked at the top of their class," Sorey chuckled. He had heard that claim so many times, and he could make it, too. "You'll definitely be challenged." He felt already that Mikleo would be fine. He was certainly hard-working enough from the looks of things.

 

Mikleo wasn't affronted by that, but instead gave him a little smirk. “Do you think you could beat me?”

 

Sorey was taken aback by this sudden confrontation, but responded in just as teasing a tone. “ _May-_ be,” he said. "I have been here longer, after all. You need time to catch up."

 

Mikleo grinned back at him. “Now that does sound like a challenge."

 

"I look forward to it."

 

Professor Lailah, the young woman who was to teach their class, stepped out in front of the rows of desks holding a pointer in her hand. “Good evening, class! This is your digital processing course for anthropology, _in threee deeeee_ , so I hope you brought your glasses _!_ ” She whipped out a pair of 3-D glasses and put them on her face, but nobody laughed. She sighed. “Oh. Well. In this course, we will be focusing on applying digital processing techniques to the field of anthropology. We will be examining some very delicate fossils and artifacts with electronic equipment—make no bones about it!”

 

This time, the class seemed to pity her and spared her a laugh. Mikleo groaned.

 

“Well,” Sorey whispered. “She is interesting, all right.”

 

\- - -

 

The class ran long, which under normal circumstances wouldn't have bothered Sorey at all. He loved his classes, especially the ones that taught him how to analyze artifacts. This was the one time he just couldn't wait for class to be over.

 

He turned to Mikleo with a grin. "So, hey again."

 

Mikleo laughed softly. “Hi.” Sorey didn't mind being laughed at, especially if his own awkwardness put Mikleo at ease. “I’m glad this is my last class of the day,” Mikleo said. “That was informative but wow, she went on and on.” He began to pack his things in his messenger bag with graceful, controlled movements that Sorey hadn't noticed before. “So, where did you want to go?”

 

"Hungry?" Sorey kind of pushed all his own stuff into a backpack and slung it over his shoulder without a lot of thought. "We could go get something to eat. Because we probably shouldn't go to the library. I want to talk, not be quiet." He'd been thinking of questions to ask all week. Although, he wasn't sure if he should let anyone know that since then he'd have to admit he'd been thinking about _Mikleo_ all week.

 

“I could eat.” Mikleo tilted his head, and Sorey made note of the way he looked up when he was thinking. “There’s a café on the edge of campus I’ve been wanting to try. I think it serves all kinds of food, burgers at least for sure. My dorm doesn’t really have much for a kitchen, so I’ve just been eating microwave food for two weeks.”

 

"That's exactly why I was so glad to get out of the dorms when I did," Sorey said. "You should try to be someone's roommate. It's much better than eating unhealthy all the time, and there's a lot more space!"

 

Mikleo walked beside him as they left the classroom and made their way down the hall. “That sure would be nice,” he said. “I don’t think I could afford to live off campus, though.” He sighed. “Maybe I’ll buy a hot plate or something when I get paid again.”

 

"Well, you can come over to my place whenever you want to eat something actually edible." Sorey knew he was overselling his own capabilities to cook. It was more like Mikleo could use his kitchen to cook, maybe for both of them. Would he elaborate on that? Maybe later. "How far is this place?"  
  


“Really?” Mikleo seemed like something had set him on edge again, but Sorey still couldn't discern what it was. “Your roommate wouldn’t mind if I just uh... came over to your place?” He cleared his throat. “I think I saw it across the street from the B building parking lot.”

 

“I don't have a roommate,” Sorey said, following Mikleo's directions down the hallway. "I need to find one really quick, though. Someone to share the expenses. Or else I could be back in those dorms in a few months."

 

Mikleo didn't say anything.

 

They reached the building's exit and stepped outside. It was night already and the air was cool and fresh. Sorey began walking down the sidewalk that led through the parking lots to the other side of the campus grounds, until he noticed that Mikleo had fallen behind him. He turned and found him looking up at the sky.

 

“Oh hey, you can see Cassiopeia clearly here,” Mikleo said. He had his head turned up so that his thic backs fell away from his face, and his eyes sparkled in the light of the moon and the distant city lights. Sorey noticed then that they weren't just blue, but had a rich violet hue to them.

 

“Pretty,” he said.

 

Mikleo looked down from the sky and gave Sorey a sidelong look with a little pouty frown. “You don’t have to humor me if you’re not into astronomy, you know.”

 

"I like astronomy," Sorey said honestly. "I just don't always know what to say about it!" It was unlike history, where he could rant on and on about minute details. He gave Mikleo an encouraging smile in return for the pout. "The stars are beautiful, though. No matter who or what we are, we're under the same stars, and that's interesting to me."

  
Mikleo pushed his glasses up again. “You like to put a poetic spin on things, don’t you?” He sighed. “In that case, it can also be said that the people whose stories we are trying to learn in the course of our studies looked up at these same stars.” Then he shrugged. “Well I mean, provided they lived in the northern hemisphere, otherwise it might be more like the Southern Cross or something depending on their latitude--” He stopped himself mid-nerd-out and cleared his throat. It seemed he blushed easily, maybe thanks to his pale skin. It tinted pink as he redirected his thoughts. “Anyway, the restaurant is right there.”

 

It was a quaint corner restaurant on the edge of the campus with lots of light and soft music. A menu board hand written in chalk spelled out fancy versions of familiar food. The prices didn't seem too bad, either.

 

"Don't let the fact we arrived stop you," he said, opening the door for him. "I want to hear the rest of what you were saying."

 

Mikleo looked at him strangely for a moment and then entered through the door that was opened for him. “Well,” he went on. “Astrology is one of the few ways we can really connect with people of past eras, and experience what they did in real life. Many of the mythologies for star patterns we have are thousands of years old. So in that way, it is kind of related to history, too. I'm sure it comes up in your studies.”

 

A server kindly greeted them, and led them to a table against the wall where they sat facing each other.

 

“Of course," Sorey said excitedly as he sat down, unable to repress the urge to nerd out now. "Did you know that some cultures worship the stars themselves as gods? Not just as a representation, but an anthromorphization."

 

“You're talking about astro-theology,” Mikleo said with a thoughtful hum, then sipped the glass of water the server had brought while they look over the menu. “Man, I’d love to take a class on that.”

 

“Why don't you?” Sorey grinned with excitement at that. “We could take it together!”

 

“Eh, its not really a requirement for my major.” He sounded sad at that, like he'd rather be studying something else. But Sorey let it go. It wasn't his place to point that out. “I think I’m going to have grilled chicken caesar salad,” he said, moving on. “And um, I’ll probably get something for dessert later.”

 

“I'll just have a hamburger.” Because of course, ordering ice cream as per usual first might be embarrassing in front of his new friend. “Medium rare, please!”

 

Mikleo laughed. Again, Sorey wasn't entirely sure why he was making Mikleo laugh, but was just glad that he was. Then his pleasant laughter turned into a taunting smirk. “Besides. You might be too embarrassed to challenge me again after I smoke you in Digital Apps.”

 

“You're so sure that's going to happen, huh?" Sorey grinned. He really, _really_ liked that look on Mikleo's face. "You haven't seen how smart I am, yet. You'd better not make a habit of underestimation."

 

“Ah, I see, your sweet act is all a diversion.” He laughed and folded his arms on the table. He rest his chin on his palm. “Could I convince you that the whole debacle at the coffee shop wasn’t me being really stupid and losing my wits under pressure, but that it was all an elaborate ploy to lure you into a false sense of confidence?”

 

"I believe you, though you've ruined the effect by telling me the plan." Sorey hadn't stopped grinning yet, and had a feeling he wouldn't stop for a while. It was so nice to be so interested in someone else. He hadn't felt that in a long time, with all the stress over school.

 

The moment was interrupted when someone cleared their throat very loudly as if to get their attention. Sorey turned and was mortified to see his dear friend Rose hovering above him, hands on her hips, and a knowing smile on her face. “Sorey!” She said his name so loudly, poor Mikleo jumped. “Well aren’t you all dressed up? Who’s your date?”

 

"Date?" Sorey was surprised at the implication, and it left him confused about what to do. He knew it wasn't a date, but he didn't exactly hate the idea of it being a date, either. "Mikleo's a friend," he said. "We just met."

 

“Yep, I'm Mikleo.” “His face was burning red. “Sorey and I have a class together.”

 

“Glad to meet you, Mikleo!” Sorey knew that like himself, Rose could make friends with just about anyone. He wasn't worried about whether or not they'd get along.“ Well, if it’s not a date, then you won’t mind if I join you huh?” _That's_ what he was worried about.

 

“Uh,” Sorey mumbled. He could tell the situation was making Mikleo uncomfortable, and he really wanted to keep talking about nerdy astrology stuff, besides. Rose wouldn't allow for that. “How about next time?”

 

She shrugged as if she hadn't really intended to stay, anyway. “Eh, I wouldn’t want to ruin your _friendly_ dinner.” Then she gave Mikleo a firm pat on the shoulder. “Haven’t seen your face before though, we should hang out some other time.”

 

“Sure.”

 

Rose left to join the party she'd planned to meet up with all along. Having been so involved with Mikleo, he hadn't even noticed the table on the other sitde of the restaurant where Alisha was seated, along with a group of people Sorey wasn't as familiar with. Rose's wide circle of friends. He let out a huge sigh of relief.

 

“That was awkward,” Mikleo said, trying to laugh it off.

 

"Sorry about that." He couldn't say Rose was one to jump to assumptions, though. In fact, she was right most of the time. So why did she have the wrong idea here?

 

“I’m not surprised to run into one of your friends. You’ve probably got a lot of friends.”

 

"It's easy to make friends around here," Sorey said, putting assurance into his tone. "Everyone's really nice. I'm sure you'll make friends too." Even if Mikleo was so shy, Sorey could just simply help him make friends, then.

 

But his positive attitude seemed to have the opposite effect on Mikleo. He looked down at his hands with a sad look on his face. “I hope so.”

 

“I _know_ so,” Sorey said, refusing to let Mikleo say otherwise. He was such a cute, smart, hard-working guy, and had a sense of humor too, so why wouldn't everyone like him just as much as he already did, even after knowing him for such a short time?

 

But Mikleo came apart even more at the words, and Sorey couldn't fathom what he was doing wrong. Tears welled in the corners of his eyes and he covered his face with his hand. “Excuse me,” he said, with a tell-tale hitch in his voice. “I—um...” Sorey wanted to console him, but he was too confused to think of anything to say or do. “I have bad allergies.” With that, he stood up and hurried into the bathroom.

 

\- - -

 

Mikleo took a big sniff inward. He'd managed to stop himself from crying, but his eyes were still red and puffy. Sorey said those things to him whith such confidence, he could almost have believed they were true. But Mikleo's experience had been so different from that. His whole life inundated with terrible people, at every school and every job. The only person he trusted was his mother, and she was over a thousand miles away.

 

He ran the water in the sink and splashed his face to hide the tears. As he figured, Sorey didn't waste much time checking up on him. He was beginning to think there weren’t any other truly good people in the world, but Sorey had popped up and proved him wrong.

 

He stood up straight and wiped his eyes with his hand. "It's a ruse to get you to underestimate me," he said with a laugh that was almost a sob. "Did it work?"

 

“Yeah, it worked.” Sorey grabbed a handful of paper towels from the dispenser and handed them to him. Then he patted his back. 

 

“Sorry,” Mikleo said, and dried his face. “I didn’t want you to see that. I really love this school. All my teachers are great and even my boss isn’t that bad once you get to know her. But, home’s just so far away, you know?” He looked down, biting a bitter laugh. “Here I am getting homesick like a freshman.”

 

"Have you been this far away from home before?"

 

“No, I went to a community college near my home and lived with my mom.”

 

Sorey sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “Then  _of course_ you're going to get homesick.” 

 

"When you say it so matter-of-factly, I almost feel stupid for thinking I was stupid."

 

"Don't feel stupid either way." Sorey patted him one more time. That reassuring touch helped more than Mikleo thought it would. "I was really homesick when I first got here. Sometimes I still am."

 

"Thank you," Mikleo said, simply. His voice was earnest but he just couldn't think of anything else to say. "Maybe we should go back to our table before our server thinks we left."

 

“Only if you're ready,” Sorey said, and folded his arms over his chest like he wasn't going to take any nonsense. “We can just be seated and order all over again if she does.”

 

Mikleo tried to look annoyed to cover up whatever emotion was still showing on his face. "I'm fine, geez."

 

“You sure?”

 

As he finished drying his face, Mikleo thought of one more thing. "So um, how much would your roommate have to pay a month?"

 

"Three hundred dollars," Sorey said, eyes lighting up. “That's with utilities all together.”

 

"That's a little more than I get from my student loan," he mumbled to himself. "But with my job, maybe I could cover the difference. Plus I'll be able to cook again, so that cuts down on food expense. Hmm." He looked to Sorey. "Can I take a look? I mean, if you'd consider me. I know we haven't known each other that long." Mikleo just can't imagine Sorey being a bad person even with his jaded point of view, but he had no idea what Sorey thought about him after this incident.

 

"Of course I'd consider you," Sorey responded, no hesitation whatsoever. "We can go look at it after we eat, if you want!" Mikleo saw a bounce in his step like he was very excited about this concept, and smiled.

 

"All right.” He wondered just maybe, if he could room with Sorey, it might at least ease this lonely feeling he's been struggling with. That would be worth the price. "Can we get out of the bathroom now? I'm hungry and I still haven't decided what I'm going to have for dessert."

 

"Yeah," Sorey laughed and led the way out. "I already know what I'm getting for dessert, though," he said, grinning. "Vanilla ice cream."

 

Vanilla. Mikleo filed that information neatly away in a mental folder he's now keeping in his mind for Sorey. He knew he had an ice cream maker somewhere in his things yet to be unpacked. "I'll get pie with vanilla ice cream on top," he said, like this was somehow one-upping Sorey.

 

As they walked back to their table, Sorey shook his head. "I prefer my ice cream by itself, with nothing tainting the taste."

 

They sat down and found their drinks still in order, nobody had mistaken them for ditching the place. "No honey?” he asked. The finer points of deserts were another thing he could talk about for a long time. “Walnuts? Not even a rainbow sprinkle now and then?" He let out an indignant "Hmf."

 

“I like those things on cake or brownies,” he said. “Just not on ice cream.” Then he grinned again in that was that was both frustrating and lovely, and filled Mikleo with such a confusing feeling, his heart pulled in two directions.

 

"But!" Mikleo spat, and began to gesture with his hands as he explained. "Okay so when you eat cake or brownies, you don't put ice cream on them?" He slapped his hand the table. "Come on, that's ridiculous!”

 

Sorey covered his mouth to hide his laughter. Mikleo could feel his cheeks getting red again. The server was very confused when she returned with their plates.

 

"I put _whipped cream_ on the brownies," Sorey said after she'd left, snickering behind his hand. "Is that weird, too?"

 

Mikleo's face went completely deadpan. Then, a few seconds later, he burst out in an explosion of pent up huff, spouting a string of sentences like it was all one word. "Nobody asked you about whipped cream damn it if I never eat whip cream again it'll be your fault who puts that much syrup in their coffee anyway!?" Then he took a deep breath, but his face was still completely red.

 

"Are you scarred by the whipped cream exploding?" Sorey began to look sheepish like Mikleo's outburst might have actually scared him a little, but then he began to laugh again. "It sounds like it's your enemy now or something."

 

Mikleo crossed his arms tightly over his chest and averted his eyes off to the right somewhere, pouting. "Well, I know how to make vanilla," he said under his breath. "It's easy."

 

“Yeah?” Sorey's face lit up with excitement. “You mean you make your own ice cream?”

 

“You know, I think I'll have crème brulee instead.” He let out a deep breath, composing himself. “It's kinda like vanilla and caramel custard, with whipped cream. You'll like it, just trust me." Then he turned his attention to his salad.

 

“You'd really share your food with me?” Mikleo glanced up with a bite of salad in his mouth to find Sorey ignoring his food, and looking at him instead with this sparkle in his eyes as if the offer had touched him deeply. Mikleo didn't know why. He and his mother shared dessert all the time.

 

“Sure,” he replied. “Is your burger okay, though?”

 

“Oh, yeah!” Sorey picked it up in both hands and took a big bite. “It's perfect,” he said through a mouth stuffed full of burger. Then he swallowed. “How about your salad?”

 

Mikleo was in heaven with his whole chicken breast grilled perfectly plump over rich anchovy dressing with fresh green leaf. He hadn't had such a well-prepared meal in a long time. “It's great.”

 

\- - -

 

They ate quickly. Both of them must have been pretty hungry, Sorey thought. Then they ordered dessert. When it came, Mikleo offered him a spoon, and Sorey took a bite with gusto. The custard was deliciously soft and light, not eggy at all. It was sweet and mellow with that amazing caramel crackle on top. He wanted more to be honest, but inhaling Mikleo's dessert would have been rude.

 

“You're right,” he said. “That's just my kind of thing.”

 

"You can have some more if you want," Mikleo replied, but seemed to be doing a good job of making it disappear on his own.

 

“That's generous of you, but I'm good. Would you like to try mine?” It was just ice cream with nothing fancy on top, but it was still polite to offer.

 

“Sure.” Mikleo dug his spoon into Sorey's bowl. Sorey watched him smell it a little before putting it into his mouth and swishing it around on his tongue a few times before swallowing. This in itself was oddly adorable, despite the serious look on his face. “Good,” he said, finally. “I can tell it's real vanilla bean. I wonder if they make it here or if it comes from a nearby creamery.”

 

Sorey beamed. Mikleo really liked it. He opened his mouth to make some teasing remark about how it didn't need any toppings and thus rekindle their argument about desserts—because that had been a lot of fun. But before he could say so, the check came. He hadn't realized how late it was. The restrarant would be closing before long.

 

Sorey put his hand on the ticket sleeve. “I got it,” he said. “My treat.”

 

“No, absolutely not!” Mikleo stammered, snatching it back from him. “Half and half,” he said, pulling out his student expense card. “We'll split it.”

 

“Okay,” Sorey sighed. He had wanted to pay, but didn't want to risk hurting Mikleo's pride.

 

The check returned to them and they wrote in a tip. Soon they were on on the street again, making their way towards Sorey's apartment.

 

“How far is it?” Mikleo asked.

 

“Just a little off campus, about fifteen minutes to walk,” Sorey answered.

 

Mikleo nodded, but didn't say anything. Sorey was beginning to notice how his shyness came and went. When he was excited about something, he'd look at him directly in the eyes and talk in a strong voice. But at times like this, his gaze wandered off to vacant spots and he wrung his hands in silence. And that was okay. Sorey could do enough talking for both of them. “So, tell me more about yourself,” he said. They had plenty of time, and he wanted to fill it with more information about Mikleo.

 

Mikleo looked up and then down again, fidgeting. “Well, other than school or work, I pretty much just read books.”

 

"Books are great," Sorey answered. "I spend a lot of my time reading, too. I bet our bookshelves would be overflowing." If Sorey had enough money, he'd turn the whole second room into a library of his own. But then, having a roomate like Mikleo would be a lot more fun in the long run.

 

"I don't own a lot of books," he said, looking down at his hands. "I get them from the library. That way it's a costless hobby, so that suits me." He scrambled for something else to say. "Plus it's quiet there, and there's plenty of space."

 

Sorey kicked himself and wondered how he hadn't noticed by now. The part time job, the third year transfer, the dorm room... Mikleo had trouble with his finances. He hid it well with the way he dressed, but that's why he'd acted embarrassed at the restaurant. "Well," he said, trying not to press it, "If I have books they don't, you can always borrow them from me. I really don't mind."

 

"I'll have to see what you have on your shelf when I get there," Mikleo said. "Do you like to do anything else? Like um, video games? Music?"

 

"Music. I like music." Sorey laughed at the other suggestion. "I'm really bad at video games. Somehow I can never get the hang of them. Why, are you good at them?"

 

"I don't know if I'd say I'm good at them, but," he laughed, "Maybe that puts us on equal ground."

 

"Nobody can be worse than me," Sorey said. "Don't say that until you've seen me play."

 

"Okay, I'll concede, you may be worse than me."

 

Mikleo was looking at him again and had let his hands drop to his sides. This made Sorey smile even more. He hoped he could keep Mikleo laughing, even at his own expense.

 

Eventually they reached the apartment buildings where Sorey lived. He led Mikleo up the stairs and unlocked the door. Mikleo hung back.

 

“D-do you need to do anything before I come in?” Mikleo said. “I didn't ask beforehand so I understand if you need to clean up or anything.”

 

“Nah, I keep it pretty tidy,” Sorey replied. “I mean, except for my room and we're not going in there.”

 

“Ha, ha, yeah... Why would we need to go in your—in your room? That'd be ridiculous!”

 

Sorey looked at Mikleo strangely the way he was flustered at the mention.

 

But Mikleo quickly cleared his throat and moved on. “I'm used to needing to clean up after people, so this will be strange.”

 

“We can split the chores,” Sorey said. “I mean, if you decide to move in.” He was getting ahead of himself. It just seemed like the perfect solution for both of them.

 

\- - -

 

Mikleo stepped into the apartment and found it to be cozy after all. It was much larger than his tiny closet-like dorm room, at least. The living room was furnished with a couch and a TV that belonged to Sorey. The kitchen was small but open on both ends, with a small dining corner between it and the living room. There was a hall bathroom that would be reserved for him if he lived there, and next, the bedroom.

 

Sorey led him inside. “This would be your room, if you wanted,” he said. Although for Mikleo, it wasn't a matter of wanting really, so much as affording.

 

It had a small twin sized bed in it as well as a desk with a lamp. “You put furniture in here?” he asked, surprised. “And I could use it?”

 

“Sure!” Sorey puffed his chest out, hands on his hips. “Rose crashes here sometimes, and it was just easier to get a second bed. I don't mind if you use it.”

 

“I see.” Mikleo looked the room over one more time. Then back to Sorey, smiling. “I might be going out on a ledge here, but I think I'll take it.”

 

“Really?” Sorey opened his mouth wide and his eyes glimmered. “Great!”

 

Mikleo felt some hesitation, but why not try? It was the best deal he was going to get, and he and Sorey seemed to have a lot in common. He grinned back at Sorey with nervousness and anticipation all balled into one. “Is there any way you could help me move my stuff?”

 

“You bet!”

 

 

 


	3. New Roommate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorey gets distracted and burns everything.

Mikleo's first chance to use the kitchen came shortly after he'd moved in, when Sorey had a group of people over for a house-warming party. He felt like it was more of a stealth friend-making mixer Sorey had put together for his benefit though, and was glad that cooking gave him something to occupy himself with. He never knew what to do in a room full of people, especially if he didn't know them very well.

So, wearing an apron with cupcake print over his nicer clothes, he served a vegetable tray to keep their guests from starving while he made the rest of the food. Sorey voted hamburgers, and Mikleo figured that would be easy. He also prepared baked beans, cole slaw, and some stuffed portobello mushrooms, just in case anyone present didn't want to eat meat.

For dessert, he had been churning his ice cream maker all day, with fresh vanilla bean, of course. He had a feeling between his homemade recipe and what Sorey was used to, it'd be no contest.

He was calm and in control in the kitchen, although not without a few smudges of sauce or cream on him. Happy with the results so far, he smiled and tasted the hamburger sauce that had somehow gotten on the back on his hand.

“How are you doing?” Sorey said, stepping into the small kitchen. “Anything I can take off your hands for a moment?”

Mikleo wasn't eager to leave the kitchen and hang out with Sorey's friends, especially not without Sorey being there to help him blend in, but he didn't want to hurt Sorey's feelings even more. “Oh, all right,” he sighed, removing the apron. “The only thing you need to watch are the burgers. Just flip them over when the timer goes off. Everything else is just keeping warm.” He held the apron out to Sorey.

“This is incredibly cute,” Sorey said and put it on. He looked like such a dork in it, Mikleo had to smile. Sorey caught that and teased back. “I think it looks better on you, though.”

“No way, pink is your color.” Mikleo rolled his eyes, while still smirking, and left to join the party.

It was as awkward as he'd imagined and his heart pounded in his chest. Their living tiny living room felt so big, like he could wander around lost in it.

“Are you an archeology student like Sorey?” asked one girl with green eyes and light honey brown hair. Mikleo had seen her before. She was friends with Rose.

“Ah, no. I'm in forensics.”

“Oh, great!” She clapped her hands together and smiled. This certainly wasn't the response he was used to getting in reaction to 'forensics.' “I'm a political sciences major. I am sure the law enforcement side of your studies overlap with mine a bit.”

Mikleo perked up a little. “Really? Are you going into law?”

“Yes.” She smiled brightly. “Finally someone who's studying things happening now. Sorey only likes to talk about stuff from thousands of years ago.” She laughed brightly.

“He does love history,” Mikleo sighed. Truth was, he loved it too. To be a professional historian just wasn't a stable job.

He found Alisha easy to talk to in any case.

\- - -

It was a good thing Mikleo was having fun, because Sorey wasn't.

He had kinda gotten distracted from the timer by watching Mikleo hang out with his friends from behind the kitchen's railing. He was so glad that Mikleo had finally smiled and started to talk. Bless that Alisha for being so affable! Mikleo's face was all lit up the same way he looked at school. When he turned back again, he burgers were burning.

He flipped them quickly, but then they were all unevenly cooked, and one side of each was black and burned. Shit! Why was there still smoke coming out? They weren't on fire! As soon as he thought that, the stove eye burst into flame and the smoke alarm started to blare. The burgers were on fire, the stovetop was on fire. Very little in the kitchen was not on fire at this point.

Mikleo ran into the kitchen with Alisha and Rose behind him, waving smoke out of their faces. “Sorey, where's the breaker box? Go turn it off!”

“Okay!” Sorey stumbled over his house guests, running for the breaker that was in his room's closet. He found it and flipped the switch labled “kitchen.”

He returned to the kitchen to find Rose holding his fire extinguisher at the ready, standing behind Mikleo who had snuffed out the flaming burgers. With the power off, the stove eye had stopped flaming. Alisha was fanning the smoke away from the sensor on the alarm with a towel. Soon the ear-piercing beep silenced.

Mikleo eyed Rose and the fire extinguisher in her hands. “You sure seemed to know where that thing was right away.” He leaned against the wall and wiped his brow.

“It's not the first time I've almost had to use it,” she responded. Then she grinned and slapped him on the back. "You let Sorey cook huh? Rookie mistake!"

"I really thought I'd do better this time," Sorey sighed, pouting. "The instructions were easy."

“Hey, what’s a Sorey party without a few fireworks?” Rose laughed. “No big deal! I suck at cooking too.”

“Don’t worry about it Sorey,” Mikleo said. “The grease must have dripped into the burner when you flipped them. I didn't warn you to be careful of that, so it's equally my fault.” He lifted the pan lid to look at the burgers. They were pretty much charcoal at this point. “Well, looks like we’ll have a vegetarian dinner tonight,” he said. “Unless any of you would rather pitch in and order some pizzas.”

"We can eat what you made," Sorey said firmly, before anyone got the idea that they could order pizza. Mikleo worked so hard, after all. He felt so bad that he ruined some of his roommate's hard work at his own housewarming party. They were definitely going to eat whatever dishes survived.

Mikleo poked him in the arm with a smile. "You know when I said wait for the timer, I didn't mean the smoke alarm, right?"

“Mikleo!” Sorey huffed and poked him right back. “You know I didn't mean to!” Soon they were giving each other light punches to each other's arms.

Rose sighed. “Alisha, help me serve? Otherwise these two nerds will never feed us.”

Alisha laughed along with her and began to set out the plates.

  
  


 


	4. The Bet

Life with his new roommate was good. Sorey didn't mind buying most of the groceries as long as Mikleo agreed to cook plenty for him to eat, too. Mikleo was such a great cook—he made home churned vanilla bean ice cream, and baked the best chocolate cupcakes. Even his grilled cheeses were just the  _ best _ , and Sorey didn't know he could like those even more than his mom's. But Mikleo made this tasty orange sauce with them and he couldn't stop gobbling them up.

 

But no matter how great a cook Mikleo was, he wasn't about to let him win that bet! It was his worry at first that having so much fun hanging out with his new roommate might distract both of them from their studies, but the bet had ensured that would never happen. He studied harder than ever before, usually with Mikleo sitting across the table from him, doing the same. October came, and mid-terms approached.

 

They'd agreed to meet at the library, and Sorey got there early. He buried his face in his books and chewed his yellow No. 2 pencil ragged while going over lessons.  He didn't look up when Mikleo entered, not until he dropped his books onto the table.

 

"Ready to lose?" Mikleo snarked, while still keeping his voice down to library level. Neither one of them wanted to risk getting kicked out of their favorite place.

 

"Just keep on being delusional," he whispered back. There was something funny about intimidating each other in hushed voices like this. It was their daily routine. "You're already late on starting."

 

Mikleo sat and opened a blue metal pencil box filled with carefully-maintained mechanical pencils and ballpoint pens. “Yeah, well, I had to work, okay?”

 

“Excuses.” Sorey teased him about it, but he was worried about how many hours Mikleo worked between school and the coffee shop. Professor Lailah's class, the one they had bet on in particular, required several lab hours each week. He wouldn't have been able to handle it if he'd been in Mikleo's shoes, that was for sure.

 

“Edna was overwhelmed today," he said with a sigh, leaning back in his chair. He pushed his fingers through his silver hair, slicking it back. "And if Edna is overwhelmed, you know things are bad. I couldn't just leave her. Plus, I got an extra two hours pay, so that's nice."

 

Sorey looked at him closely this time, and noticed that his hair was damp. He must have run over after taking a shower without even drying it. Very unusual for Mikleo, who always had every hair just in the right place. Well, except for when he woke up in the morning and it was all sticking up on one side. Sorey smiled just thinking about that.

 

"So I was wondering," Mikleo continued, opening his book in one smooth motion. "A bet isn't very interesting without a stake, is it?"

 

"It's not," Sorey agreed, and closed the notes he was scribbling at, choosing instead to look at Mikleo. "What sort of stake did you have in mind?" 

 

"Well," he started, and then began to tap his lip with the knuckle of his index finger, thinking. "Halloween is coming up, and Rose is throwing a costume party, right? She asked me if I could make some snacks." Even though the housewarming party had been interrupted by a small fire, Sorey's microwave-and-pizza-fed college friends still started asking Mikleo about how he made the food, and inviting themselves over for dinner a lot. Sorey didn't mind it.  Mikleo deserved the positive attention for all his effort, anyway. As long as they didn't eat it all before he got any.

 

"A bet having to do with the party, then?" But definitely not related to the food. If Sorey had to make the food, it would be everyone's loss.

 

“Winner gets to pick the snacks?” Mikleo wondered.

 

“Nah, that's no fair. I love all the snacks you make regardless of the situation.”

 

“You sure do.”

 

Sorey laughed at how assured Mikleo seemed at that. It wasn't untrue, though. What else was there? Sorey grinned as the obvious idea came to him. "Loser has to wear the winner's costume pick!”

 

"Costume?" Mikleo sputtered the word. Then he tapped his lip again. “So I could dress you up like a little piglet? Or a chicken?” He smirked devilishly and chuckled to himself.

 

Sorey had to stop himself from laughing at how tame those ideas were. Mikleo's all-around prettiness lent itself to more risque possibilities, but he had to keep up a poker face. Otherwise, Mikleo would try to come up with something worse than a pig.  And if he put his mind to it, he could come up with something devastating.

 

“It's more fun if it's a surprise,” he said, leaning back in his chair. “You don't have to think too hard about it though, since you'll never win.”

 

Mikleo just gave a shit-eating grin back at him. "We'll see."

 

\- - -

 

The day after the test was taken was worse on his nerves than the test itself had been. Lailah was a good instructor, and the material was comprehension-based, so there was not much room for error. However, that meant Mikleo had to be on his guard for Sorey, who he knew was smart enough to get everything perfect, too.  He was sure he wouldn’t lose, but he didn’t know what they’d do in the case of a tie.

 

Lailah handed out the grades. "You both did amazingly well!" She said, handing them their tests. "I'm expecting great things from both of you."

 

Sorey: 110

Mikleo: 109

 

Mikleo saw the numbers and gripped his paper so tightly it almost tore in half.

 

“What did you get?” Sorey smirked, waving his perfect score in front of Mikleo's face. "Because I doubt you did as good as this~"

 

Mikleo turned red and stood out of his seat with a stomp. “Professor Lailah!”

 

"I don't think you can change the grade~" he said in a sing-song tone as Mikleo walked away. "She might get mad if you bug her."

 

Mikleo walked up to Lailah's desk. She was stacking some papers and turned to him with a big smile. "Yes Mikleo, what can I do for you?"

 

"W-where did I go wrong?" he asked her, desperation in his voice, clutching the paper in his hand. "How is this possible?"

 

She looked back at him with a confused stare. "Oh! That's right, you did miss one question. A multiple choice." She took his wrinkled test and flipped the paper to the marked question. "But don't worry. It was only worth one point, and you picked up ten plus extra on your essay question. It was marvelous! So you still made well above a perfect score! Congratulations!"

 

Mikleo read the question over and over. "But I knew the answer to this," he grumbled. "I knew it!" And yet Lailah wasn't wrong either, he had certainly marked the incorrect answer.

 

He turned and walked back to his desk to face the music. "Well, Sorey?"

 

He found Sorey leaning back in his chair, hands crooked behind his head, grinning. "This is going to be fun," he said. "We can go shopping for the costume after class."

 

"I'm at your mercy," Mikleo sighed. "I'm not one to back out of a bet." He sat back down in the desk next to Sorey and shoved the shameful paper into his bag. "Maybe you'll wait until Sunday though? I'm tired tonight." He yawned. "I've been up since 7 AM, early coffee shift."

 

Sorey tipped his chair forward again and the teasing look left his face. Mikleo hoped Sorey wasn't pitying him because of his schedule, that would only add insult to injury. "Okay," he said. Then smiled again. "Your beauty sleep is more important. You're going to need it."

 

Mikleo scoffed. "God, you're a nerd," he groaned, throwing his bag over his shoulder. 

 

"Clearly more of one than you are," Sorey said, tapping the paper pointedly before packing it away, standing up as well. 

 

"You heading home now, or will I see you later?"

 

"I'm heading home, yeah."

 

It was understood silently that they'd walk together, then. "Should have never taken that extra shift on exam day," Mikleo grumbled, as they walked down the hall. "If I'd been more alert, then we could have at least tied.”

 

"Sorry.” Sorey patted Mikleo on the back. "Maybe we should compensate for that next time."

 

Mikleo graciously accepted the familiar affectionate pat that came with his defeat. One upside, at least. “Nope. You won fair and square.”

 

\- - -

 

Back at home, Mikleo was so tired that he'd changed into his pajamas and slippers before he'd even started making dinner. Sorey waited at the table not really reading the book in his hands. Mikleo was being too distracting without realizing it. His baggy pajama set was so cute with its purple polka dots swallowing his small frame, and fluffy white slippers. Sorey did feel bad though that Mikleo's eyes were so dark and tired, and yet he'd insisted on making dinner despite Sorey's offer to order take-out.

 

Mikleo's idea of a “quick and easy” dinner was this wonderful stir-fried chicken and vegetable dish over rice with a garlic and ginger sauce. Sorey had already started noticing changes in his health since Mikleo began cooking for him, cutting out a lot of the greasy burgers and pizza. He had more energy, and he was regaining the tone he'd slacked on since his studies had taken over his life. And even though he was paying for more than his share of the groceries, he was somehow spending less money. Mikleo was much better at shopping thrifty than Sorey had ever been.

 

"So, any ideas for my punishment?" Mikleo said, taking his seat. "Let me just mentally prepare."

 

Sorey didn't start eating until they were both seated and Mikleo had taken a bite. The sauce Mikleo whipped up to stir everything in was so yummy, he poured even more over his rice.

 

Between the cute pajamas and amazing food, he took a minute to come back to that. "My top favourites are a maid outfit and a cat outfit," he said. "But I have other ideas too."

 

Mikleo cringed. "A maid? Like, wearing a skimpy dress?"

 

"No, no," Sorey answered. "I wouldn't go that far. Then I'd be evil." He took another bite, then chuckled. “Unless you think you can pull it off.”

 

“Just let me cover my butt,” Mikleo groaned. “That is all I am asking, really.”

 

"I promise, no exposed bottom." He never planned on that in the first place, though he certainly wouldn't have complained about it, either. Mikleo was already pretty shapely just in his fancy tailored pants.

 

"What are you going to be while I'm in costume? I don't care what the bet is, I'm not calling you 'master' or 'lord' or making any cute cat noises. The bet only pertains to the costume itself."

 

"If you're a maid, I could be the butler," Sorey said. "Then we're paired together." Of course Mikleo got the embarrassing part of the pair, but it had to at least  _ kinda _ be a punishment, right? "Too bad about the cat noises, though. Can't even make any just for me?"

 

Mikleo's eyes got big at that, and he sat up rigidly in his chair. Sorey saw his face get all pink and then red. "Absolutely not!" 

 

“You're blushing.” Sorey forgot about the food and studied Mikleo instead. “What'd I say?”

 

"If we go as a group costume that might be more fun," Mikleo said, dabbing his mouth with his napkin, ignoring the question. "So then it's settled. We'll look for costumes tomorrow after school. Halloween is still two weeks away, so we should be able to find something."

 

Sorey really wanted to know what had gotten Mikleo so flustered, but he let it drop.

 

Mikleo stood with his plate in hand. "Well, I'm done, I think I'd better go to bed."

 

"Are you sure?” Sorey couldn't hide the disappointment in his voice. “We could hang out a bit, you know? Midterms are over, so we don't have to study anymore. Why not have some fun?"

 

Mikleo considered it. "I guess I don't have to go to work in the morning, so..."

 

“Yeah, let's stay up late for once!”

 

“Okay, as long as it's just a movie or something.”

 

"I'll clean up the food and you pick a movie," Sorey said, smiling happily at Mikleo's assent. Doing the dishes was his job since he couldn't cook worth anything, and it was a more than fair trade off.

 

“Thanks.” Mikleo yawned as he went into the living room.

 

Sorey washed the dishes as quickly as he possibly could and joined Mikleo out on the couch. He nestled into the seat next to Mikleo, with some cookies to snack on and the remote in hand.

 

Shortly after hitting play, he noticed Mikleo clutching himself around the arms. “Cold?” Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed the big fluffy blanket he liked to cuddle with and threw it over both of them.

 

“Okay,” Mikleo sighed, and sat close enough that they could share it. But he didn't get close enough that they touched at all, and Sorey found himself perplexingly disappointed by the lack of Mikleo's warmth at his side.

 

Of course he didn't want to lean in. That would be kind of weird wouldn't it? He shook his head to clear whatever thought that was out of his mind.

 

The movie distracted him from the random feeling of loneliness that crept up on him, even though Mikleo was right there with him. It was National Treasure, one of his favorites. The story was woefully inaccurate, but he liked the idea of a treasure hunting adventure. That was going to be him someday! Well, probably less adventure and more painstaking documentation, but still.

 

Funny that Mikleo would pick this one, out of all his DVDs. Just as his thoughts returned to Mikleo about a half hour in, he felt weight falling into him and turned his head to find Mikleo sleeping, head leaning on him, cheek smooshed against his shoulder.

 

He realized in that moment that he would very much like to brush his hand over Mikleo's pretty silver hair and push his bangs out of his face. But he didn't. Instead, he wrapped the blanket around him tighter. Once his arm was around him, there wasn't any reason he should take it back. He was just holding the blanket up for his friend. Because he was cold.

 

Mikleo's eyelashes fluttered against his cheek. He yawned so close to Sorey's ear that he could feel his breath, and mumbled something in gibberish. Sorey roughly translated it as "I need to go to bed." Then, without any comment about the situation he'd found himself in, perhaps without any awareness of how close he was to Sorey, he attempted to get to his feet and stumbled.

 

Sorey stood and steadied him. "Are you going to be able to walk?" Mikleo's weight against him was so slight, he considered the pros and cons of simply carrying him the rest of the way. It would be safer, but Mikleo might protest to being carried bridal style through their living room.

 

“I'm fine,” Mikleo yawned. "Good night, Sorey." With that, he went slack again. No pros and cons to it. Sorey caught him and pulled him up into his arms. He was unsurprisingly light and curled up against him like a kitten.

 

“Time for bed,” he said, unable to stop from chuckling a little. Mikleo was deeply asleep already, and didn't wake up even as he was carried across the living room and down the hall.

 

Sorey lowered him gently into his soft little twin bed, and pulled the blankets over him. After all that he was still out cold, his mouth agape, drooling even. What a heavy sleeper. It was a wonder he managed to wake up on time every day.

 

Sorey bet Mikleo would be embarrassed of his sleeping face, but he much preferred this cute goofball to the pristine, sophisticated kind of guy Mikleo would probably like to be seen as. He mumbled something about pork chops and apple gouda in his sleep. Sorey smiled.

 

“Good night, Mikleo.”

 

\- - -

 

Mikleo woke the next morning in his bed with no recollection of how he'd gotten there. The last thing he remembered was sitting on the couch with Sorey. Sometimes when he exhausted himself, he'd sleep walk or simply wouldn't remember what he'd said and done the night before. His mother told him stories about it like it was just a cute habit, but he always worried that someday he'd do something he might regret later.

 

And perhaps he had. Trying to remember the night before, he couldn't get Sorey's words out of his head.

 

_ Too bad about the cat noises, though. Can't even make any just for me? _

 

He knew Sorey hadn't meant anything by it. Sorey was frank with people, flattering them with compliments or praise, completely innocent to the implications his attention could have. Mikleo had become accustomed to filtering Sorey's words and actions through his innocence. Even this maid costume was nothing sexual, despite the obvious. For Sorey, it was just messing with a friend for fun.

 

But still, when Sorey said things like that it made his blood run hot.

 

Mikleo stood. He still had on his pajamas, and his slippers had been placed carefully beside the bed. He wouldn't have put them there like that in his half-asleep state. Was it Sorey?

 

He left his room and explored the living room to find Sorey still sleeping there, well after ten, with his clothes still on from last night. The TV screen was glowing blue with the word VIDEO 2 blinking across it as if the DVD player had run all night and shut itself off.

 

Rather than wake Sorey up, he figured he'd start up a nice breakfast, and Sorey would come to him. Fluffy pancakes, applewood smoked bacon, and eggs with black pepper and cheese.

 

Sure enough, just as the bacon began to sizzle, Sorey was awake and poking his head into the kitchen, his eyes puffy and hair disheveled. “Mikleo, are you making that good smell for me?”

 

“The smell itself is a byproduct,” Mikleo laughed. “But yes, I'm making the food for you.”

 

Sorey looked at him with such a contented expression. “Mikleo, you're the best.”

 

He knew these little things didn't mean love, but it was okay. Sorey's sleepy smile and his pleasured “mmm!” when he bit into his breakfast were enough.


	5. Control Group

Mikleo was glad in that very moment for the fact that he had a bathroom to himself.  

Sorey had found a reasonably conservative maid costume.  The downside was that it was even more feminine and demure, and he wasn’t sure what was worse.  The black dress's puffy shoulders and flouncy skirt gave the illusion that his waist was even smaller and more curved like a girl's.  The black tights made it obvious how slender his legs really were.    

Once it was mostly on, he emerged from the bathroom.  "I can't zip it up," he said.  "And the apron is supposed to tie in the back, too."  He tried not to give Sorey too much satisfaction by showing how embarrassed he was, but it was pretty much a fact that he'd have a deep pink blush on his face for most of the night.

Sorey came out from his own bedroom wearing all of his own costume except for the jacket.  If Mikleo was flustered, then Sorey all dressed up in formal wear didn't help.  The dress shirt and tight vest accentuated his shoulders and the curve of his back, and Mikleo didn't even dare to look below the waist at how his pants were fitting.

“Uh,” he stuttered, looking at Mikleo wide-eyed.  “Come here.”   Mikleo thought he must look really stupid, if Sorey’s eyes bulged out like that at the first look athim.

“I hope you’re happy with yourself,” he said, turning to give Sorey access to the infernal zipper.  “I can’t reach it at all!”

Sorey chuckled as if he was indeed happy with himself.  His fingers grazed the bare skin of Mikleo’s back as he pulled the zipper up.  “At least you’ve got me here to help you.”

Mikleo suffocated the squeak that threatened to come out of him at the sensation, which had the effect of mewling like a cat.  “Yes, what a big help you are Sorey, making me wear this thing!”

“Um,” Sorey muffled a laugh.  “Did you just  _ meow _ ?”

“No, I did not!”  Mikleo turned and grabbed Sorey’s tie to straighten it, and hopefully shut Sorey up.  “Come on, if we’re going to do this, at least look put together.  Your tie is a mess.”

“Don’t insult my tie-tying skills to try to change the subject.  You totally meowed like a cat.  Are you my pet now?”

Mikleo scowled so hard it could spoil all dairy products in the tri-state area.  "Your  _ pet _ ?" He felt himself getting red in the face.  His voice came out squeaky and absolutely brimming over with salt. "You want me to wear a collar or something now?  Want to walk me on a leash?  It's your night after all, Sorey!"

“Hey, I’m just teasing.”  Sorey ruffled Mikleo’s hair.   He groaned and had to readjust the placement of the white frilly headband.  “Although a cat maid would be pretty cute, don't you think?  Darn, I should have combined both ideas!"  Then he backed up, anticipating some sort of retaliation.

Mikleo smiled, which may have actually been scarier than if he’d tried to smack him.  “Just remind me not to check your browser history.”

Sorey scoffed.  “You won’t find anything incriminating!  Why do you think I’m looking at porn?”

“I don’t know Sorey, you really jumped on the whole  _ meido _ thing fast, didn't you?"

He looked back at him with his arms crossed, pouting.  “Are you accusing me of making you wear this stuff so I can fetishize you?  That would be really weird.”

Mikleo sighed.  “Well obviously you’re just trying to embarrass me since I lost our bet.”

“I wouldn’t do that either!  Well, not  _ too _ much, anyway.”  He seemed to be struggling over what words to use, looking away and scratching at his cheek.  “I put a lot of thought into what you’d look good in, and I just know everyone is going to think you look amazing.”

“Why?”  As soon as he said it, Mikleo wished he hadn’t asked.  "I-I mean never mind, just put the rest of your costume on before we’re late!"

Sorey went to put on the sharp black coat that completed his look, but he didn’t drop it.  “Because,” he said.  “I’m not a jerk.  You only lost by one point, and you deserve some slack.  I don’t want anyone to make fun of you, or make you feel bad.”

Mikleo sighed in relief.  What he’d actually meant was  _ why would anybody in their right mind think I look ‘amazing’?   _ But the way Sorey interpreted his statement avoided an awkward confrontation.  Sorey was always calling him cute and saying he looked nice in his clothes, and it was best left at that. "Will you help me carry the snacks?" He asked.  "I made chocolate black cat cookies and vanilla crunch ghosts."

“I’ll carry them, but I can’t guarantee I won’t eat them all before we get there.”

Mikleo laughed.  “Good, you can tell me if I used salt instead of sugar.”

“I’m sure they’re great.”  Sorey dug into the tray with the ghosts on them.  Once big bite later he was smiling and making _ mmm _ sounds.  “You know something?”

Mikleo looked up as he tried to find some way of carrying his wallet.  The dress didn’t have any pockets.  “Hm?”  

“I’m really lucky.”

Mikleo smirked.  “You bet you are.  If I hadn’t been working the morning of the exam, I’m sure I would have tied you.”

“No, I mean you.  Being here.”  A chocolate ghost down and he was grinning even wider.  "All I was looking for was coffee and I met you instead. My roommate and best friend. What's luckier than that?"

He felt heat in his cheeks again and looked down to hide it.  “That makes me pretty lucky too, then.”

Sorey set the tray back down and Mikleo looked up to find a warm expression on his face.  “Mikleo um,” he began, fidgeting with the tails of his coat.  “Would you kick me if I tried to hug you right now?”

"Why would I mind?”  Mikleo blurted it out, but he could think of a lot of reasons.  Friends gave each other hugs right?  This was normal, right?  At any rate, it would be weirder to refuse.

“Okay,” Sorey said, and put his arms around Mikleo in a loose hug.  Mikleo put his head against his shoulder for a brief moment before deciding it was too nice, his broad shoulder in that jacket, him smelling of wonderful shampoo--and pulled away.  Sorey let go and forced a laugh.  “No more fires in this apartment since you moved in, huh?”

“No more fires,” Mikleo mumbled after him.

“Come on.  Let’s go, or Rose will be angry with us for showing up late.”

“Right.”

 

  * \- -



 

Walking down the street in their costumes was a lot of fun.  People kept whistling and cat-calling at them.  Sorey didn’t really get it, but he smiled and waved back at them. It was Halloween so it shouldn’t be too weird to see people in costume, right?

Mikleo seemed embarrassed though.  He kept holding his skirt down with his arms and hanging his head.  Sorey frowned.  He really just wanted Mikleo to have fun, too.

Once they arrived at the party, his fears were alleviated.  Everyone looked up as Mikleo entered the room.  They smiled and cooed in awe.  Sorey’s chest swelled up with pride for such a good costume he’d picked out.  Then he didn’t expect it, but it started to feel tense inside him when everyone crowded around Mikleo admiring him.  Was this what being jealous was like?  Sorey was so unused to it, he wasn’t even sure.  

He felt someone tapping on his arm and turned to find Rose beside him.  She was dressed up like a classic vampire with fangs and a cape and everything.   "Sorey,” she said with a pronounced lisp due to her plastic fangs.  “You wanna help me carry these cookies into the kitchen?  That way Mikleo can just keep looking pretty."

“Sure,” Sorey said.  He turned to Mikleo.  “Don’t get into too much trouble without me, all right?”

Mikleo looked a bit apprehensive about splitting up, but waved and smiled to let Sorey know that it was all right.  Alisha was there with him by that time, so Sorey thought he’d be able to survive.  She was wearing an easter bunny costume.  Apparently she’d asked Rose for suggestions and Rose had said “bunny girl!” and Alisha hadn’t quite gotten it right.

As soon as they passed through the crowd of Rose’s friends to the kitchen and far out of earshot of Mikleo over the conversation and the tune of Monster Mash, Rose punched Sorey hard in the arm.  “You dog, you!” she chuckled.  “You didn’t tell me you two were going to wear couple’s costumes!”  

“C-couple’s costumes?”  Sorey tilted his head and rubbed his arm where she punched it.  “I just picked one to go with his so he’d be less embarrassed.”  

“Well, if this was a contest, I'd give you the cutest couple award, I'm just saying."  Rose rolled her eyes and began laying cookies out on halloween-themed trays.  "But oh right, you guys are just friends huh?"

“Friends and roommates,” Sorey clarified.  "You keep implying otherwise."

"Well, you could have fooled me."  Rose flicked his arm.  "I've never seen you dress up so nice, not even in your graduation photos."

"Well, it's Halloween, right?" Sorey rubbed his arm again.  He knew it was a poor excuse, but he couldn’t think of anything else.  "We have to try for Halloween."

Rose ran a hand through her hair.  Her expression changed from teasing to just as much concern as she could deliver with those ridiculous fangs in her mouth.  "Sorey, is it true that you don't have any special feelings for Mikleo at all?  Because I'm your friend too, and the way you are with him seems different than what we have."

"That's because..." Sorey trailed off. What he was about to say was just another excuse.  This was Rose.  He couldn't make excuses to her.  He had to think through what she was saying.  He owed it to her, and to Mikleo most of all.  And if he thought about it,  _ really _ thought about it, he felt strange around Mikleo a lot.  

And that hug felt so right, and... 

“I don’t know.”

Rose grinned.  "Well at least now you're being honest!"  Her smiled softened to the loving concern of a good friend, and she rubbed Sorey’s arm.  "It's okay not to know.  You're a scientist, aren't you?  You're both nerds, so let me explain it to you this way.  It's like you're trying to run an experiment without a control group.  You've never had feelings for someone before, so how do you know what it's like when you do?"

"It seems like something you'd just know," Sorey said, exasperated with the idea of it being something that sneaks up on you. "If it's so important, why isn't it recognizable?" The idea of liking someone and being clueless about it made him feel defective and stupid.

"Just think about it," she said with a shrug.  "I'll stop bothering you from now on."  She finished setting out the cookies and decided to try one.  Just like his had earlier, her face lit up with pure delight when she tasted it.  "I tell you what though, if you don't marry that guy, I might!  You lucky bastard, getting to live with somebody so good at cooking, I kind of hate you right now."

Sorey poked her in the side and teased.  “I got to try them first~”

  
"Uhg, come 'ere and let me suck your blood!"  With that, Rose chased Sorey back into the living room where their friends were waiting for them.


	6. Best Medicine Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorey is sick.

Sorey was sick. 

He was the kind of sick where you developed a new hatred for the bathroom floor.

He spent most of the night alternating between puking and coughing his lungs out, which just made him puke more. That part seemed to be over, but he was still a general mess. Bleary eyed, he stumbled from the bathroom to his bed.

There was a knock at the door. “Sorey?” Mikleo’s voice. “I brought you some water.”

Sorey tried to remember what level of disgustingness his room was at. Since Mikleo never looked inside, he didn’t bother to keep it clean as the rest of the apartment. There was laundry everywhere, books all over the place, and empty coffee cups left laying out. But at this point, he was really too miserable to care. “Thanks,” he rasped out. “You can come in.”

Mikleo entered the room wearing pajamas. How late was it? Had Mikleo already gone to bed? “Sorry,” he said as he took the glass. It felt so nice and cool in his hands. He drank just a sip of it, careful not to challenge his stomach too much. “Did I wake you up?”

He felt another cool sensation as Mikleo pressed the back of his hand against Sorey’s forehead. “You’re burning up,” he said. “Did you take anything for the fever?”

“I took some Tylenol,” Sorey squinted his eyes, trying to think. “Yesterday?”

“No wonder you feel terrible.” Mikleo sat down next to Sorey and began rubbing his back in circles with his palm flat against him. “I’ll go to the corner store and get some medicine for you. Will you be all right for a few minutes? I could take you to the emergency room."

Sorey was surprised at the contact initiated by Mikleo. That almost never happened. It felt really good, too. Mikleo put pressure against him right where his back was the most sore. “I think my stomach is done for now,” he said. “So I should be okay until you get back.”

“Sit tight. I’ll be back in a few.”

His perception was hazy while Mikleo was away. He was aware of time passing, but not how much. He might have fallen asleep at some point, because the next thing he knew was that Mikleo was back with him, wearing jeans and a sweater now from having gone out.

Mikleo lined up a few small boxes on Sorey’s nightstand. He took the first one and began removing the tiny pill from the plastic bubble packaging. “First take this anti-nausea,” he said. “We need you to be able to eat or else the Tylenol won’t stay down.”

"I'm not sure I can eat anything," Sorey groaned, remembering the bathroom floor. “I don’t want to get sick again.”

“Just Jello,” Mikleo said. “Worst case is you throw up some Jello, but I really need you to keep some pain reliever down. I’m worried about your fever the most.” He looked at him with the saddest little face. “Can you try for me, please?” 

“Okay,” Sorey said. He trusted Mikleo enough to put his stomach on the line for him. 

First he took the nausea medication. It was a tiny pill that tasted weirdly of cherries when it dissolved on his tongue. He swallowed it down, and rested for a few minutes to make sure it wasn’t coming back up. No vomit yet, at least.

Mikleo smiled and tore the foil lid off the cup of jello. He took the spoon he’d brought with him and lifted out a small bite. “Just a bite or two,” he said. “Then we’ll see how you feel.” He waggled the spoon in front of his face. “If you can hold it down, I’ll feed you some ice cream next.”

“Please, please stay down,” Sorey said to the Jello. “I want my ice cream.” He looked up at Mikleo, skeptical. “Vanilla, right?” 

“Yes, it’s vanilla. I hid the last batch in the back of the freezer.”

Sorey ate the Jello off the spoon and made sure it was good and dissolved in his mouth before he swallowed. He narrowed his eyes. “Sneaky,” he said. “Like…” His thoughts were still fuzzy. “Some kind of ice cream ninja.”

"An anthropological archaeologist who believes in ninjas? That's new."

Sorey took the Jello cup from him and began to eat the rest on his own. As he ate it, Mikleo rubbed his back again. 

"Do you feel hot, or do you have chills?"

“Both,” he groaned. He let his shoulders relax into it, and that relieved some of the pain without even having taken the medicine. "Right now I’m hot all over." Sick as he was, he had the presence of mind to worry if he was sweaty and gross so close to Mikleo.

"I'll make an ice pack for you," Mikleo said. He left the room again, much to Sorey’s disappointment, but returned in a few seconds holding a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a cloth. “Sorry, this is the best I could do.”

"No, it's perfect," he sighed, and held the cold compress to his head. It was such a simple thing, but he sighed and rubbed his cheek against it.

"I wish I had a heating pad for your back. You look so uncomfortable.” Mikleo snapped open another package of medicine. “At least you haven’t puked again. Let’s try the pain reliever. I got a children’s dosage for you to start with. I hope that way it will be easier for you to digest it.”

“It helped a lot when you were rubbing my back.” Sorey didn’t want to ask outright, but he hoped Mikleo would do that again.

“You’re so spoiled.” Mikleo started to massage him. "Back rubs and ice cream, I swear."

Sorey figured it was probably okay to take the medicine. It was a chewable tablet, the kind given to children. “Who’s the one spoiling me?” he asked as he was chewing it.

He sighed. “I guess it’s me.”

“If you get sick, I’ll do the same thing for you.”

“I’ll remember that.” Mikleo’s hand continued moving between his shoulder blades, relieving the soreness there. "I've never had anyone I could spoil before." Then he cleared his throat. "Like I mean, I never had any siblings or friends." 

“You have friends now.” Sorey leaned into Mikleo, resting his head on the smaller boy’s shoulder. It was a weird angle, but Sorey didn’t care at all. He couldn’t believe Mikleo had a hard time making friends before. Did those other kids not see what they were missing?

"Does your throat hurt? You shouldn't talk if it does."

"It hurts, but I like talking with you.”

He felt Mikleo’s chest expand as he inhaled a deep breath, then the decompression as he released it. “Okay. Then, yeah. I have friends now. You’re to thank for that.”

Sorey slipped his arm around Mikleo’s waist. “I want you to stay here.” He knew he was being selfish, and that he wasn’t thinking clearly because of the fever. But having Mikleo so near him made him feel better by itself.

Mikleo hummed laugh. "Hm, so you don't want me to get up and make you some ice cream?"

Sorey whimpered and shook his head against Mikleo’s shoulder, squeezing him tighter in case he might try to get up. "You're better than ice cream." 

"Better than ice cream? That's some praise." Mikleo yawned, and Sorey remembered he’d gotten out of bed just to take care of him. "I won't leave until you're ready. Just let me know. I’ll help you get to the couch. You can watch TV and eat your ice cream."

“Thanks.” Sorey squeezed him one more time. “I’m ready now.”

\- -

Mikleo watched Sorey as they moved from his bedroom to the living room couch. He would have to steady him if he fell, or else he could end up with a serious bump on the head.

The decision to move was a fortunate one, so that he could keep an eye on Sorey without the awkward feeling he got from sitting in Sorey’s bed with him. There was nothing that made Mikleo happier than caring for Sorey, but with Sorey in a fever-addled state, they were starting to get maybe too comfortable there. 

He knew it was just the fever.

Sorey was woozy, but made it to the couch without incident. Mikleo lifted his legs up for him so he could lay down, partially elevated, with his head against the armrest. He’d managed to keep the kid’s dose of Tylenol down, but he was still shaking and hot to the touch. 

“Mikleo, you’re the best.” 

Mikleo sighed. Sorey’s voice was almost completely broken and he looked up at him with hazy, half-lidded eyes. “Come on now, you’ve got to stop talking so much. Your throat is sore.”

“It’s true. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

When Sorey could keep down some real cold medicine, it couldn’t be fast enough. He was acting delirious. “If I wasn’t here, you could call Rose or Alisha or any one of your other friends and they’d rush over.”

Sorey hummed something intelligible at that. “You’re different,” he said in an almost sing-song tone. “You’re just…” He trailed off like he wasn’t even aware he had been speaking.

He placed his hands on both of Sorey’s shoulders. “Stay right here,” he said, worried Sorey might try to walk some more. “I’ll bring your ice cream.”

By the time he returned, Sorey had fallen asleep. He shook him gently to wake him. “Hey,” he said. “Don’t fall asleep before you get your ice cream. Then you can take your medicine and go to bed.”

Sorey stirred. “Yeah,” he said, grasping for the bowl. “And I want to watch TV…”

He cleaned the bowl in record time. Mikleo sighed. “I guess I’ll have to make another batch soon.” Then he gave Sorey the real adult’s cold medicine and watched him make grossed-out faces as he gulped down the green liquid. It was a relief once it was finally done, and Sorey would soon be fever-free and knocked out.

“Someday I’m going to cook a nice meal for you, Mikleo,” Sorey mumbled. “I’ll learn how to make it just for you.”

Mikleo laughed. “I’ll have the extinguisher ready.” He tucked the blankets around Sorey’s legs. It would stop him from getting chills, and it might also stop him from trying to get up. He sat next to Sorey. Soon as he was down. Sorey kicked his legs up into his lap, blankets and all. Mikleo sighed and tucked the blanket in around his legs, resigned to his new role as footrest. “You’re so spoiled.”

“I’m talking about making you a wonderful meal, and you’re calling me spoiled?” He pouted, then he grinned and nudged Mikleo with his foot. “Come on. You know you love me.”

Mikleo froze.

He stood up, pushing Sorey's legs off without thinking. “I'm sorry!” He scrambled, trying to reposition Sorey's legs but without really touching him too much. “I just remembered a piece of homework I forgot to do and the medicine seemed to work and you're feeling pretty sleepy anyway and I mean you don't need me anymore right?”

Sorey looked up at him, still a bit disoriented. "I thought we were going to watch tv together." Then he thought for a moment. “It’s okay. You need to do your homework. I’m pretty sleepy anyway.”

Mikleo felt guilt crash into him like he couldn't even process, but he couldn’t think of another more constructive way to deal with the situation other than to lie. "I'll leave my door open, so just call for me if you need anything." It felt bad, but he didn’t want to talk to Sorey about this while he was hopped up on cold medicine either way. Maybe if he were awake and alert, but even then…

He waited in his room, not doing any imaginary homework, until he was certain Sorey had fallen asleep. 

Worried, he went back to where Sorey slept on the couch and touched his hand to his head. His skin was a normal cool temperature. His breathing was much less ragged, like the cold medicine had knocked the phlegm out of his lungs.

Sorey looked peaceful sleeping there, and it made the guilt in his heart pang. He turned off all the lights. Before returning to his room, he knelt next to Sorey one more time, and pressed a kiss to the top of his head so light, that even awake he may not have noticed.

“I’m sorry.”


	7. Best Medicine Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Mikleo's turn to be sick.

A few days after Sorey's illness cleared up, Mikleo started to exhibit similar symptoms.  It was as if it been had  incubating in his system the whole time.  He was getting ready for an early shift at 6 AM, putting on his battered work clothes, when his stomach started to revolt. He rushed to the bathroom to avoid making a mess of things.

He was unwillingly evacuating the contents of his stomach when Sorey knocked on the bathroom door.  “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”  His voice was as raspy as a hundred-year-old chain smoker, and he was hugging the toilet.  “It’s just allergies!”

“Allergies.”  He could practically  _ hear _ Sorey shaking his head in dismay through the door.  "Allergies that coincidentally make you throw up, after I was throwing up a lot too?"

“Allergies.  And food poisoning?”  He knew Sorey wasn’t buying it.  "Uhg I'm gonna be late for work."

Sorey knocked on the door again.  "You're not going to work. You're calling in and resting at home."    


Mikleo leaned back against the tub and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket.  "I'm just gonna call Edna and tell her I'm running late."  But before he could unflip his phone and find the contact, he was tossing his cookies into the toilet again.

Sorey opened the door and knelt down beside him, rubbing his back until he got it all out.    


“I’m sure it’ll pass,” Mikleo gagged, wiping his mouth.  He laid his head on the side of the tub.  It felt so nice and cold.  At that moment, his phone began to ring.  He knew that it would be Edna, because he was already fifteen minutes late, and he was never late.  He answered it.  "No really I'm fine-- You don't have to--  I didn't ask you to--  Why?  No I'm not--  Okay fine!"  He held the phone out to Sorey.  “Here, she wants to talk to you, I guess.”

Sorey took the phone and listened.  "Yeah, he's sick. No, I'm not letting him come in. Yeah.  Definitely.  Thanks.  Okay, bye."  He flipped the phone closed and smiled up at Mikleo.  "Looks like you're off the hook, Sickleo."

Mikleo groaned.   "But I'm trying to save up enough to go home over winter break, and I need every hour I can get!"  He propped himself up against the wall, hoping his stomach was out of stuff to push out of him.    


It wasn’t until then he noticed how much he was shaking.  He raised his hand and watched it  quiver in the air in front of his face.  “Sorey?” he asked.  “I think I’m sick.”    


“I know you are,” Sorey said.  He set the phone on the counter and joined Mikleo on the bathroom floor again.  "It's a good thing we have medicine left over, yeah?"  He placed his hand on Mikleo’s forehead and frowned.

Mikleo was glad that the fever at least excused the blushing and sweating, which was probably more due to Sorey touching him than the fever.   He didn’t think he could handle another night of close physical contact with Sorey before his heart exploded.  He shrunk away from Sorey’s hand.  "Yeah, but you ate all the ice cream."

“Hey, I could make juice pops,” Sorey said.  “I don’t think there’s any way I could mess that up!”

“Don’t tempt fate like that.”  Mikleo tried to laugh, but started coughing instead.    


“Let me get you some medicine!”  Sorey got to his feet and rushed out of the bathroom.  Mikleo smiled to himself, wondering if maybe Sorey was enjoying this chance to repay him for the care he’d given him earlier.  Or maybe he was just getting delirious.

  
Sorey returned with a cup full of cold water and the two kinds of medicine that seemed to have worked before.  “Nausea medicine first,” he said.

“I remember.”  He drank the water, glad to rinse the sick out of his mouth, then took the tablet.  "Bleh, I just want to get back in bed."  He stood up on wobbling legs.    


Sorey held him steady.  “Careful, don’t try to walk on your own.”

Mikleo sighed and allowed Sorey to take some of his weight as they walked across the hall to his room.  "Okay, okay."  He could hear the raspiness in his own voice.  "I need to change out of these jeans, though."  His voice cracked when he laughed.  "Are you gonna help me with that, too?"

"Uh."  Sorey stared back at him.  "I can wait outside, don't worry."

"Yeah, you probably should.”  Sorey sounded like he wasn't 100% sure he was joking.  Once Sorey stepped out, he changed out of his jeans and work shirt and into a nice soft set of shorts and a tank top.  "I'm decent," he said from the bed.  "You can come in if you want."

Sorey entered with another glass of water for him and the rest of the medicine he needed.  Mikleo thought surely he wasn’t as sick as Sorey had been.  He took the stuff for his fever.    


"I'm going to make you juice pops in a minute," Sorey said. "But I don't want to leave you alone until I know you're all settled in."

"You're sweet.”  Did he mean to say that out loud?  His speech was slightly slurred, too.  He took a sip of the water and felt how sore his throat was when he swallowed.  "At least you already had it, so you don't have to worry about catching it from me again."

Sorey sat on the edge of the bed.  "I wouldn't worry either way."

"You don't want to go back to bed?"  Mikleo frowned.  "I woke you up and you never get up this early."

“I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I knew I was leaving you to fend for yourself.”

Mikleo groaned.  “Come here then.”  He patted the space on the bed beside him.  "You can help me study for my organic chemistry test.  I prefer to be doing something productive if I'm not going to work, at least."

Sorey got up momentarily to find the materials laid out on Mikleo’s desk.  He gathered up the text book and papers for organic chemistry and then plopped down into the space offered beside Mikleo, swinging his legs into the bed.  "We can study," he said.  "But if you can't concentrate, don't get down on yourself."

Mikleo leaned his head onto Sorey's shoulder, looking into the book in his lap that was marked with dozens of tabs.  "Just try to keep up with my notes," he said with a yawn.  "I wouldn't want to go above your head or anything."

Sorey snorted at that and put his arm around Mikleo.  Mikleo was too tired and sick to torture himself over the implications of it.  He just knew he felt warm and relaxed, and not as shaky or chilled from the fever as before.   “I think I can handle it,” Sorey said.

"That's uh.”  Mikleo’s finger hovered not quite over where it was supposed to be in the book.  "So explain this formula to me.  Not that I don't already understand it or anything."

“You mean this one?”  Sorey took Mikleo’s hand and moved it so it pointed at the right spot.  Then he began to explain how it worked, droning on intentionally.  Mikleo felt his eyelids getting heavier.

"Yeah, that..."  The letters and numbers Sorey read began to blur together into one soothing sound.  Mikleo wasn’t even sure if he was awake anymore.   His breathing started to sound more like snoring.  "Your voice is nice," he sighed and mumbled about juice pops as he drifted off.

Sorey kept talking, reading from the book at first, then uttering nonsense about cows and sheep on Old McDonald’s farm, listing off names of superheroes from comic books, and so on.    


Mikleo didn’t hear any of that.  “Mm, smells good…” 

“What does?”

Mikleo didn’t answer.    


"Feel better soon," Sorey whispered, and pulled the blanket up to Mikleo’s shoulders.    


Mikleo went to sleep with a smile on his face, mumbling unintelligible nothings as he dreamed.  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	8. Special Time of Year

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The holiday season approaches, and Mikleo is in a foul mood.

Mikleo arrived at the restaurant at the end of the block, the same one where he'd first eaten dinner with Sorey and, incidentally, met Rose, who was now his friend as well.   Snow was gently falling, sticking to metal surfaces like cars and lamp posts.

The term was finally over, and he'd made perfect marks.  Even Sorey couldn't beat him.  Not that he could claim he'd beaten Sorey, either.  In the end, it had been a tie.    


A melancholy mood overcome him at the thought of his friends drifting back to their homes for winter break, while he'd be unable to go anywhere.  It didn't put him in the mood for a party, but he couldn't cancel on his friends after they'd been nice enough to invite him.  Before this year, he hadn’t really been invited to anything before.  He wasn’t going to screw it up.

He found Sorey waiting outside the cafe.  He was bouncing on his heels as if he’d been anticipating something for a while.  Why wasn’t he inside?  Everyone ought to have arrived by then.

“Mikleo!”  Sorey spotted him and sprinted to meet him.  “Hey!”

He was so enthusiastic, but Mikleo could barely manage a smile.  This might be the last time he’d see Sorey for a while.  The apartment would be empty whenever he came home.  He swallowed it down and tried to look happy for Sorey’s sake.  "Hey, Sorey.  What's up?  Is everybody else here yet?"

"A few people," Sorey said, slinging his arm around Mikleo’s shoulders, pulling him in the direction of the cafe.  "You look down. Are you that disappointed you didn't beat me in the bet?" 

Mikleo looked up skeptically at Sorey and at the arm hanging over his shoulder.  “You didn’t beat me either, you know.  There’s always next term.  Lailah is too soft on us.  We need to take a more difficult class.”

“I’ve heard professor Dezel’s class is tough.  Let’s try him!”

Mikleo frowned.  He was pretty sure that course wasn’t on his curriculum.  In fact, he wasn’t sure if he and Sorey would have any of the same classes.

“I’m going to see if Lailah’s got any internship positions open,” he said.  “Work study would be a lot nicer than the coffee shop.”  But only if it paid more.  He hadn’t even saved up enough money to fly home for the holidays.    


"Just don't try to work both of them," Sorey scolded.  “Even you have your limits.”  Then he pulled away, folded his arms and looked up into the snow-speckled sky.  It was a strange posture, like he was trying not to laugh or something.  It seemed incongruent with the concern he was expressing.  "Seriously, though, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," Mikleo said, but he looked aside and rubbed his ear as he said it.  "Have you made plans for the holidays yet?  Going to see your family, I bet."

"Yeah," Sorey said, and a grin crept onto his face. "But I think you'll want my room free anyway, so it'll work out fine." He hummed, trying not to be too obvious. "Of course, I'll have to clean it up, first..."

"Is Rose going to be staying with me in your place or something?"  Mikleo had by this point caught on that Sorey was trying to surprise him with something, but he still couldn’t make out what it might be.  "I wouldn't mind that, you know.  Or better yet, Alisha.  Alisha can borrow your room any time."

“Nope, they’re both going home for the holidays, too.”

“So then.”  Mikleo pulled the arm off his shoulder and stood facing Sorey, scowling.  “You didn’t invite somebody I don’t know to come live with me out of the blue or something, did you?”

Sorey was eating it up.  He began to laugh in that teasing kind of way that drove Mikleo completely nuts.  “Oh, I’d say you two know each other pretty well,” he went on.  “Since the womb, in fact!”

Mikleo bristled up like a small animal that needed to look bigger when threatened by a predator, hair standing on end.  “What did you do, Sorey?”

“I got you a Christmas present!”

Mikleo huffed and punched Sorey as hard as he could square in the shoulder.  “What. Did. You.  _ Do. _ ”

“Ow, ow!’  Sorey pretended it hurt more than it did.  “The guys and I all pitched in a few bucks, and together it was enough to get a plane ticket.”

Mikleo’s arms dropped to his sides.  “You didn’t…”

“We did!  Your mom is coming to visit.  She’s really excited to see where you live.  We’ll go pick her up tomorrow night before I leave.”

Mikleo’s hands clenched into fists and he lowered his head.  He began to tremble, and punched Sorey again.  This time softly, with his fists landing on Sorey’s chest.  “You shouldn’t have done that,” he said, voice wavering.  “Not…  not for me.”

“Why not?”  He felt Sorey’s hands rest on his shoulders but was afraid to look up because his eyes were watering.  "Why wouldn't we? You're great and deserve to have a great holiday. You weren't going to have one otherwise." 

"I can't believe you.  Any of you.  You're too good to me and I didn't give you any reason to be." He lifted his head and smiled through the tears.  "Thank you."

"You did give us a reason," Sorey said.  He pulled Mikleo into a hug and rubbed his back.  "You are  _ you _ ."

Mikleo leaned in and tried to stop himself from crying before anyone who wasn’t Sorey managed to see him.  "Where's everybody else?" He asked in a struggling voice. "I have to thank them all."

“I reserved us the party room,” he said.  “Everyone should be inside.”  He pulled Mikleo away and inspected his face to see if he was still crying.  “Do you need to wash off first?”

"I'm okay now."  He sucked in what remained of his tears and gave Sorey his best smile.  "Maybe it's this restaurant huh?  It's like my designated public crying place."

"At least this time the tears are because of something good."

Mikleo laughed.  He still had trouble processing that so many people would do something like this for him.  And that he was going to get to see his mother after all.  “I can’t wait for you to meet her.”  He was too worked up to even notice his arms were still pressed against Sorey.  “You’re the best.”

“I think we’ve already established that you are indeed the best,” Sorey said sagely, nodding his head.    


Mikleo opened his mouth to retort evidence to the contrary, but suddenly became aware of how close the two were and had been for the past several minutes.  He backed away, hoping the blush on his face would be dismissed because of the crying.  “I’m so thankful to all of you!”  He cupped his hands against his chin wondering how on earth he was going to pay them pack.  “I’ll be cooking treats for years.”

“You don’t have to pay us back, that’s not the point,”  Sorey scolded him again.  “The point is to see you happy. So as long as you are, then we are, too."

Mikleo put his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest.  "I'm still going to make you all the snacks you can eat.  You want to fight me?” He gave him one more punch, this one playful.  “Come on, let's go see everyone."

“Can’t argue with that.”

They entered the cafe and stepped through to the room on the side where everyone was waiting for them.  Rose had a Santa costume and Alisha was a reindeer, and even Edna had shown up, wearing an elf’s hat.  It was a bit of a shock to see her integrating so well with his other friends, but he found himself relieved to think that maybe she’d still be in his life even if he quit the coffee shop. 

Everyone was drinking eggnog and raised their glasses to cheer when they entered.  “ _ Meebo! _ ”

“I guess that caught on,” Mikleo groaned.

“I guess it did!”

 

  * \- -



 

For most of the next day, snow fell intermittently.  By the time Mikleo and Sorey got into Rose’s car, it was sticking on the ground.

Rose was still a little bleary-eyed from the previous night’s festivities, but she assured everyone that she wasn’t hungover.  Sorey was pretty good at discerning the difference after as long as they had known each other, and gave the okay.

Mikleo bowed his head and held out a tray of brownies with peppermint crush frosting on top.  “These are for you,” he said.  “I hope they’ll keep you from getting hungry on your trip.”

Rose laughed.  “You don’t have to act weird because we got you such a We spread it out, so it really wasn’t that bad.”

“So you don’t want peppermint brownies?”  Sorey pretended to take the tray for himself.

“Now I didn’t say that!”

“Watch out Sorey, she might cut you.”

Mikleo took the passenger’s seat and Sorey sat in the back. With the brownies safely stashed away, Rose shifted into drive and they were off for the airport.

As soon as they parked, Mikleo jumped out of the car and began looking up and down the row of arrivals frantically.

“Relax, Mik!” Rose shouted to him, hanging over the car from her side.  “She’s probably at baggage claim still, just wait a minute”

Soon enough,  a small but elegant woman with long brown hair emerged from the airport front doors and rolled her baggage towards them.  At first Sorey didn’t think she looked very much like Mikleo, but then she smiled at them all and he saw those same unique violet eyes that Mikleo possessed.

"Mom!" Mikleo shouted and ran to her.  She was a little shorter than him, and he swept her up into a big hug.    


“Goodness, I’ve missed you, too!”  Muse laughed.  “But I need to breathe.”

Mikleo let go, but he was still smiling ear to ear.  He spoke fast and a little too loud the way he did when he was excited, and that made Sorey all the more happy they’d arranged this for him.    


"Mom, this is Sorey.  And in the car there is our friend, Rose."

"The famous Sorey," Muse said, and smiled at him again.  "It's nice to match a face to the name."

Sorey felt himself blushing a little.  “Does Mikleo talk about me a lot?”

"Of course," Mikleo grumbled, trying pretty obviously not to look embarrassed.  "I had to let her know I wasn't staying with a psycho serial killer or something, you know?"

Rose laughed and clapped her hand on the roof of her car.  "You sure he's not, Mik?  I mean, do we know for sure?"

“The only thing I murder are recipes.” Sorey pouted at the implications, even if they were a joke.  “And that’s why we have a fire extinguisher.”

Muse laughed.  Her giggle was bright and dainty.  “Mikleo was quite indignant after you set the stove on fire.”

"I-I was not!"  Mikleo crossed his arms and pouted.  "Sorey was just trying to help, and it only happened because I didn't drain the oil properly."

Sorey snorted.  “You’re kinda being indignant  _ right now _ .”

Mikleo couldn’t argue with that and just bristled with his arms crossed.  “Hmf.”

Muse kept smiling at him.  Sorey began to wonder if he had something on his face, or if his hair was sticking up the wrong way, or anything.

"Speaking of food,” Mikleo said.  “Aren't you all getting hungry?  I have everything set up to serve dinner at home."

He opened the door to the front passenger's seat.  "Here, mom.  Let me take your bags.  I'll sit in the back with Sorey."

Rose shook Muse’s hand.  “And it is my pleasure to be your driver today.”

They got into the car and Rose pulled out of the pick up lane.  Rose’s car wasn’t that big, and even Mikleo being short as he was, was cramped up into the back seat beside Sorey with his legs folded.    


Muse seemed amused by the arrangement.  "Don't get into too much trouble back there."

“How would we get into trouble?” Sorey asked.  “We can barely even move.”

“Sorey, you’re squishing me.”    


Sorey couldn’t alleviate the situation at all.  He was already trying not to touch Mikleo’s legs as much as he could help it.  Before he could apologize, a text book slid out of the back window as Rose turned a corner and hit Mikleo in the head.

Mikleo scoffed.  “Couldn’t you have cleaned your car out first?”

"Oh, what's that?  Thank you for taking me to the airport, Rose?  Well, you're welcome Mikleo!"  She punctuated it with a hard turn that threw Mikleo into Sorey.

"Whoa!" Sorey laughed, trying to make light of Mikleo being suddenly in his lap.  "Don't crush me, Mikleo, you're weighing me down."

“ _ I’m _ crushing  _ you _ ?” Mikleo said in a squeal.  “Are you serious?”  Sorey tried not to laugh, since if he knew how cute he was, it would only make him angrier.  "Rose!  If you want to punish me later that's fine, but don't drive like a maniac with my mom in the car!"

“Let’s all calm down,” Muse said.  “Rose, thank you for the kind offer, but you really shouldn’t play around with the car.”

"Sorry, couldn't resist.  They're so funny when they get like this."

“Get like what?” Sorey said.     


Rose laughed more boisterously than before.  "I'm not sure if you're more like siblings or an old married couple, but it's funny!"

Mikleo folded his arms and legs as if trying to compact himself in the space available to him.  "And you're like the merciless older sister."

"Are you calling me  _ old _ while I'm behind the wheel?"

Soon they were almost back to the apartment, and Sorey couldn’t help but kick Mikleo a little.  Mikleo side-eyed him and kicked back.  Before long, they were elbowing and nudging each other.

Muse sighed.  “Boys, you’re crowded enough back there as it is.”

“Yes mom,” Mikleo said immediately and dropped the horseplay.    


Sorey smiled at how sweet and obedient Mikleo could be when his mother was involved.  Of course, he loved his own mother, too.  But he liked to tease her a lot more.

Outside the apartments, Rose didn’t park in a space, but came to a stop outside the curb instead.

“You want some dinner?” Mikleo asked.  Sorey noticed him offering food at every turn.  He hoped he wasn’t still trying to pay everyone back, but he wasn’t one to say no to Mikleo’s home cooking, either.

“Gimme a rain check,” Rose said.  “I’m setting out for my folks’ house tonight.”

“Safe travels then,” Sorey said.  They waved goodbye.  He turned towards the apartments.   “Well Muse, here it is.”

“It looks much nicer than I expected,” she said.   “Although the weather doesn’t look too good.”

“Yeah, I’m hoping it’ll hold off.”  Sorey wouldn’t want to miss his flight because of the snow.

 

  * \- -



 

For Mikleo, it felt both strange and comforting to have his mother in his home.  It seemed natural to have her nearby, and yet this was a setting that she wasn’t a part of.  He led her through the living room and the kitchen and finally to his room.    


“That’s the tour,” he said.  “Not much, but it’s a lot better than the dorms I was in to start with.”

“You’ve made a lovely home,” she said, smiling.  "I'm glad to see you're well taken care of."

"Sorey does take good care of me.”  Mikleo remembered Sorey kneeling on the floor with him as he was sick.  The memory could not be recalled without bringing with it a reminder of how he’d felt that one night.  He kissed Sorey, not in a way that was particularly romantic, but still.  Sorey didn’t remember at all, so they’d avoided an awkward confrontation, but that in itself just made him feel dirty about it.     


He realized he was spacing out and snapped back to attention.  "I mean, he’s great as long as he doesn't try to cook, at least."

"And you take good care of him in return, I'm sure."  Mikleo knew his mother wasn’t stupid or anything, and had probably picked up on a few things.  "But we'll talk more about that later."    


He sighed in relief that her ‘mom talk’ would be postponed for a little while longer.

"Yeah, well, at this point nearly the entire student body has assigned me their personal chef, plus professor Lailah too.  Should have never made her cupcakes," he laughed.  "Sorey and I tied her class anyway."

“I really can’t believe there’s someone smart enough to keep up with my son.”  Her voice was full of honest surprise and admiration as well.    


"Sorey is smart, all right.  He just acts that way."

“Acts what way?”  Sorey poked his head into the room.    


"Like a big goof ball," Mikleo answered, hoping his mother wouldn’t notice his face getting red.  "You goof ball!"

Sorey made a  _ tsk _ sound and wagged his finger.  “I am no goofball.”  Then after a moment of thought, he came back with a retort.  “You’re the goofball.”

"How dare you," Mikleo groaned, rolling his eyes.  "Well mom, you'll be staying in here tonight, then after Sorey leaves tomorrow, you can have his room to yourself."  He sighed.  "Now Sorey, can you behave yourself while I make dinner?"

"Of course I can behave myself," Sorey said, sounding even more offended. "What exactly do you think I'm going to do?"

Mikleo snorted.  “You might try to help.”

“Hey, I--!” 

Mikleo watched as his mother rest her hand gently on Sorey’s arm.  He never had a sibling, but watching her, he knew his mother would have been great at solving their arguments if he ever had.    


“Sorey,” she said softly.  “I want to hear more about you.  And you can tell me embarrassing stories about Mikleo.”

“Hey!”

“Embarrassing?”  Sorey rubbed his chin, thinking.  “Well, there was Halloween.”

“Ooh, tell me about that!”

“Hey, don’t tell her about Halloween!”

“Shh, Mikleo, weren’t you going to cook?”

Mikleo resigned himself to this torture and went to the kitchen to get dinner started.  He had casually asked Rose about what Sorey’s favorite food might be so that he could make it for him on the last night before he wouldn’t be seeing him again for a week or two.    


Rose had told him what he already expected, that Sorey wasn’t picky.  He liked rich and hearty food.  A meat and potatoes kind of guy.  So with that in mind, he baked a shepherd’s pie.    


When it was ready to serve, he emerged from the kitchen to find Sorey and Muse laughing and getting along.    


It was hard not to think at that point that Sorey truly was his family.  

 

  * \- -



 

Muse found Mikleo’s bed comfortable, which was a good sign.  She hated the idea of her son sleeping on an old tattered mattress like she had done so many times in her youth, that was when a mattress was even available.    


She knew better than to offer to sleep on the couch.  Mikleo would never allow that.  And, it was nice to give her boy a bit of confidence and let him provide for her, if in only the smallest way possible.

Sorey was packed and ready to go that morning.  Another friend who Muse didn’t have the chance to meet was driving him, so he and Mikleo said their goodbyes at the door.  Maybe it was her wishful thinking, but seeing their hug goodbye felt like watching a movie where lovers part at the end.    


When Sorey was gone and Mikleo was lonely despite her presence, she knew it had to be something.  She gave him a big hug.  “How about that talk?”

She knew how much Mikleo hated mushy heart-to-hearts and wasn’t surprised when he groaned.  “What if we take a walk?” he said.  "It's starting to snow outside.  We don't get much snow at home, huh?”

Muse hadn’t been expecting such heavy snowfall.  “I’m afraid I didn’t bring a heavy enough coat.”    


“Oh, you can wear one of mine!”  Mikleo dug in his closet excitedly for one of the cute pea coats he collected during warmer months from thrift stores looking to cut down their stock.  The one he chose was nice, although probably quite old.  He and draped it over her shoulders.    


“Not sure it will fit me,” she said, and prodded his tummy.  “You’re much too thin.”

He scoffed at that.  "Oh, please.  The only way you could possibly be thicker than me is if you factor in boobs."

As if her son would know anything about breasts in general, she thought. “Ahem.”  She gave him a look like he better show some respect.    


She put the coat on, and then Mikleo brought her a scarf.  “You better bundle up Mom,” he said.  “There’s been a flu going around and I wouldn’t want you to get sick. Me and Sorey both got it.   I know you don’t get to use your vacation from work very much, and I’d hate it if you were sick the whole time.”

“Oh, but dear, maybe we shouldn’t go out into the cold if you’re recovering from an illness.”

“But I want to see the  _ snow _ .”  For a moment, he seemed like a little boy again, enamoured with the simple wonder of falling snow. He seemed to recover himself and continued in a more even tone.  “Besides, that was weeks ago.”

"Okay," Muse said reluctantly, "but the moment I hear you sniffling, we're right back inside." She would stand firm on that. Mikleo would not be getting sick a second time on her watch.

Mikleo bundled up as well.  He looked very handsome to her, and with something different about him that he’d ever had before.  Maybe a sense of confidence, or some newfound pride in his appearance.  He led her outside.  The campus grounds were beautiful, especially with the sparkling white dust falling down on them and coating them in the purest fluff.

"I hope it's not too cold," Mikleo said.  He looked up as snowflakes drifted down from the sky and became caught in that pale platinum hair he’d gotten from his father’s side.  Then he turned to her.  "I'm glad you're here, but it's too bad Sorey's going to miss the best snow day."

"You think about him a lot, don't you?"

Mikleo released a heavy sigh.  "Yes."  He shuffled the ground with his foot, and stuck his hands in his pockets.

“Why do you think that’s so?”  She wondered if he already knew.

“Because,” he said.  "He's always around me.  At home or in class.  Even at work, he comes in early just to see me.  It's hard not to think about him."

"It sounds like he thinks a lot about you too, then." Muse tapped her lips with a finger as she thought, a small smile tugging at her lips.  “You are very good friends.”

"Yes, very good friends," Mikleo said.  His tone had a bitter bite in it.  He tapped his fingers on arms crossed tightly over his chest.   "You'll probably scold me for saying this, but," he sighed again.  "I used to think that the only other person I needed was you.”

“I would scold you if that’s what you thought,” she laughed.    


“Well, I’ve never had friends before and I was just fine.”

“Mikleo,” she sighed.  “You’re a smart boy.  You’re too clever, and you’re so handsome, too.”  She ruffled his hair, setting snowflakes free from it.  “You didn’t fit in with the boys in our little home town.  But there’s a big world out there, and there are lots of people who would love to be friends with someone like you.”

“You  think so?  It doesn’t seem that way.”

She placed a hand on his shoulder.  “When I found out that your friends had pulled together to do such a wonderful, personal thing for you, it made me so happy.”

“I still can’t believe they did that.”  Mikleo sighed.  “I have them all now because of Sorey.  Without him, I’d still be alone."

“That’s not true either,” she chided him lightly.  “Sorey just helped you open up.  Everyone else likes you because of  _ you _ .”

Mikleo frowned at that, but he started to blush even more than could be attributed to the cold weather.  “Even if they do, it’s still Sorey’s doing and I don’t even have a Christmas present for him.”

“Oh, you don’t need to give him a  _ thing  _ per se,” Muse said.  She was trying hard not to jump on the opportunity to go shopping with him, and help him buy the perfect thing.  But that would just emasculate him farther, and she knew better.  “You could give him a really good experience.”

"Experience?"  He put the knuckle of his index finger to his lip in thought.    


“Yes,” Muse said.  “You don’t have to spend money, it’s better to create a memory.”

Mikleo considered that a moment before speaking.  "I guess I have been going about this wrong.”

Muse tried not to laugh too much.  “What kind of thing does he like?”   Some mistletoe would probably do the trick, but Mikleo would never go for something like that.    


"He likes history, most sciences really, books, and..."    


Mikleo seemed to be thinking hard about this.  So far, all the things he listed were his favorite things, too.  “Is there anything you two don’t have in common?”

“Hm, well he likes comic books and dumb movies, and video games too, but we both suck at them.  I’m not into that stuff, but it’s fun to watch him.”

“I see.”

“Oh, there was that dumb thing about astrology."  He laughed and his eyes twinkled as he recalled the memory.  "I started geeking out about the constellations, and he wasn't as interested in it as I was, but he said I was cute and we talked about it for a long time."  Then, sudden realization and back peddling.  "I mean, he said I was  _ funny _ and being a nerd!"

"Cute, hm?"     


He tried to hide his face behind his hands.    "Yeah but that's just Sorey!  He says stuff like that to everyone, and he doesn't mean anything by it.  It's like I said, he just acts goofy!"

“Okay, different question.”  Poor Mikleo was so flustered, but she couldn’t help but grill her son a little, right?  “How do you feel when he says things like that to you?”

Mikleo sighed, dropping his hands along with, apparently, his pretenses.  "I know what you're getting at and it’s true, okay?"  He huffed, puffing out breath in the cold air, and crossed his arms over his chest again.  "I just don't really want to do anything about it, that's all."

Muse frowned and stole his hands out of his tight grip around himself.  She squeezed them tight.  "Why not?"

Mikleo squeezed her hands back and his rigid posture loosened up.  She allowed him to release one of her hands so that they could continue walking, hand in hand, down the sidewalk that encircled the campus’s grounds.  Walking through the winter wonderland gave him all the time he needed to figure out what he wanted to say.

"Sorey's my best friend.  I've never had a friend like him before.  Even if he was to say yes, what if I screw it up?  What if I mess it up and it's too painful to look at him anymore, and I can't even go back to what we have now?"

It tore her heart.  On some level, she felt it was her fault for Mikleo’s insecurity.  If she’d been more financially able, she could have sent him to a school with other smart kids who wouldn’t have been intimidated by his intellect.  She could have moved them to a metropolitan city where he’d have been more likely to meet other kids with his artistic interests.  But life wasn’t kind like that.  She had to take the opportunities she was given even if the risk was great, and Mikleo needed to learn to do that for himself, now.

"I know why you are worried," she said, patting his hand in hers. "But you can’t hold yourself back.  I have a feeling you'll always become friends before you start to like someone. You're so shy, and you like to get to know people before you invest in them.  There’s always a risk that you might lose a friend that way, but it’s a risk you’re going to have to take someday.  Otherwise, you’re going to be left wondering someday what could have happened."

Mikleo was silent for a lingering moment as he considered that.  Muse knew her child, and she could almost see the cogs turning in his head.  He was so smart, and she was so proud of him.  But at times like these, his analytical nature made something that should have been more impulsive into an unsolvable puzzle.

"I guess, if I think about it logically," he mumbled.  "My worst case scenario isn’t based on any real evidence. I’m just as likely to succeed as I am to fail.  It would be nice to have a little more information about how Sorey felt, though.  I’d like to avoid making him uncomfortable.”    


Muse had to hold her tongue from telling Mikleo that Sorey was in love with him.  It was obvious from the way that they looked at each other, how they found excuses to touch each other, how they laughed so brightly when they were together. At least in regards to reciprocation, there wasn’t a risk to worry about.  But Mikleo had to realize that on his own.    


“I don’t always follow your science stuff,” she said, trying to nimbly nudge him in the right direction.  “But when it comes to everything else, I know you’d rather find out the truth, even if it’s a little risky.”

"You're right.”  A spirit of determination kindled in him, he looked up at the snow falling down from the sky like a man about to go into battle.  "I wouldn't shy away from any other challenge, so..."    


She put her arm around him and kissed his cheek.  “Good luck, I know you’ll do your best.”    


He squeezed her hand.  "Thank you.  this is why I miss you so much.  I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Give yourself more credit, you're a smart boy. You'd have reached the answer eventually.  But I'm always here for you."  They kept walking.  “Now then, let’s figure out what to give Sorey for Christmas.”


	9. Stars Align (1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mikleo gives Sorey a gift in return in the form of a mysterious car trip.

Sorey waited at the airport for several hours while his flight went to “delayed” to “we don’t know” to “definitely canceled.”    


Though the storm was clearing up in their part of the world, leaving piles of snow in its wake, most the destinations including Sorey’s were down.  Planes weren’t coming in on time, and everything was messed up.   Finally they told him another flight would be arranged for him in the morning.  Several of his friends were in the same situation, so he caught a ride home with one of them.  No sense in waiting at the airport another twelve hours.

Disappointed by the prospect of being unable to see his family for another day, he returned home.  The upside was at least that he could spend more time with Mikleo and get to know Muse a little better.    


He didn’t expect to be ushered into a rental car by Muse as soon as he got there.  Mikleo was in the driver’s seat and ready to take him… somewhere.    


\- - -

It was well after dark and the moonlight reflected off what remained of the snow through the rented SUV’s windows, illuminating Mikleo’s face.  "Will you tell me where we're going yet? Or is it still a mystery?"

"I know you're bummed that your flight got canceled," he answered, eyes on the road.  Mikleo was a serious driver, unlike Rose.  "I don't know when you'll be flying out and I still have to get you your present too, you know.  So tonight's just as good as any time."

"Now I'm even more curious.  Either we're going to go buy something, or the present is a destination.  If it's a destination, where could it be? How far is it?" He realized he was processing out loud and made an effort to shut up. If he hadn’t been upset about other things he'd be bouncing in his seat, but as it was, he kept tapping his fingers and  glancing between Mikleo and outside the car.

The road had been cleared, but piles of snow laid on either side of the highway.  If it had been Rose he may have been more concerned about the ice on the road, but not with Mikleo.

Mikleo smiled.  "Sorry it's such a long ride.  Just relax.  My mom got us a nice car, right?"  Unlike Rose's rink-a-dink vehicle, this one was tall and spacious.

"There's nothing to fall on your head in here. It already wins with that." Muse had been really generous by gifting them the rental car for the night, and it was probably one of the nicest cars Sorey had ever ridden in. "I don't mind the long ride.  I hope it doesn’t cost Muse too much.  The whole point was we brought her here to--"

“Don’t get started with that after you got onto me,” Mikleo cut him off.  “If I know my mom, she would have gotten a great deal on it.”

“Your mom is like that too, huh?”

Mikleo nodded, as if their family history of exceptional frugality was a matter of honor.  “Of course.”

They spent most of the car ride in silence, but it wasn’t awkward or tense.  It was relaxing for Sorey to unwind from all the stress at the airport by watching the light of passing street lamps play off of Mikleo’s hair, listening to his CD of soft piano tracks.    


They were a distance out of town before Mikleo took an exit and then turned onto an old county road.  It was flat and dark, with nothing but trees for miles.  Sorey could make out the faint silhouette of a building with a domed roof in the distance.

"So, the school owns this place," Mikleo said, finally revealing part of his secret.  "And there shouldn't be anybody around.  I don't have keys to the building or anything, but we've got this awesome car to come back to of its too cold."

They parked and Sorey stepped out of the SUV onto frost-coated grass that crunched under him.  He couldn’t make out much of anything.  All the light of the rental car’s headlights revealed was a vacant parking lot and more trees.

Mikleo turned off the headlights and used an electric lantern that cast a soft blue light instead.  He opened the trunk and pulled out a couple of quilted blankets, a thermos, and two mugs. "This is a dark sky zone," he said as he laid the blanket out over the least icy patch of grass he could find.  "You can see the sky without any city light pollution."

The idea dawned on him as he watched Mikleo sit down on the blanket and fill their mugs.  “Hot chocolate,” Mikleo said, holding a mug between his gloved hands.  “And I have more blankets if you get cold.”

Instead of joining him on the blanket, he stared at Mikleo for a moment that stretched on and on. "You remembered," he said, barely giving voice to the words. "You remembered what we talked about the first time we met."  If he didn't know any better, he would have said this was the most romantic thing anyone had ever done for him.  It left him speechless.

Mikleo smelled the warm steamy chocolate milk before sipping it.  "Hard to forget embarrassing myself like that," he laughed.  "I hope it's not too boring.  I know stars are more my thing, but..."    


Too bewildered to say much else, he sat down. Mikleo even remembered that Sorey liked big marshmallows in his cocoa.  Sorey watched him rip open the bag and laughed when a few spilled on the ground.    


“It’s not boring at all,” he said, sipping the drink.  How did Mikleo make stuff like this so delicious?  He must have had it hundreds of times, and it never tasted the way it did when Mikleo made it.  “I want to hear you talk about the stars.”  Mikleo could talk about the regulations of college football or politics of number two pencil imports for all he cared, he’d still give him his rapt attention.  “So which are your favorites?”

"I don't think I can choose a favorite," Mikleo said, looking up at the sky.  It was so full of stars in this place without any other light.  He went on, stammering.  "I-I mean, there's so many, it doesn't seem fair.”

Sorey laughed.  “Okay, then give me the highlights.”

Mikleo cleared his throat.  “Well, Alpha Centauri is the closest system to Earth, so that's really cool if you think about it.  If we ever travel to other stars, that'll be the first one we go to.  But it's hard to see, even from the southern hemisphere.  So I guess I prefer Polaris, the North Star.  Its historical significance alone is astounding.  I mean, just thinking that people have used it to tell north for thousands of years is amazing.  And also, because it's so directly in line with Earth's axis, it doesn't move in the sky.  It's always there, I guess.  It's reliable like that."      


Mikleo paused and laughed awkwardly at himself.  “Sorry.”     


"Why are you apologizing?" Sorey was watching Mikleo's face the entire time, though he knew should have been looking at the stars.  That's was the point, wasn’t it?  But just like last time, he  found Mikleo's excitement more interesting.  He shook his head when he realized what he was doing and forced his eyes up at the sky.

"I brought you here to relax and I'm ranting at you."  Mikleo laughed.  “But if you want to know, then..."  He rose up on his knees and pointed, as if doing that would somehow get him closer to the stars.  "You can see the uh, little dipper, yeah?  The bright one at the end of the handle is Polaris."   He shrank back down, hugging his legs, trying his best to contain his exuberance.  "It's the Ursa Minor constellation.  So yeah… I love the pole star the most."

Sorey fixed his eyes on that star, knowing if he didn’t that he’d end up staring at Mikleo again.  "It's pretty," he said.  About the star.  "So we've always been looking at it?"

"It's written in Babylonian star catalogues.”  He rocked back in forth, holding his knees to his chest, and looked very content looking up.  Sorey found himself jealous of the stars themselves for holding his attention, which sounded downright crazy when he admitted it to himself.  "I'm sure that ties in with your studies."  Mikleo was wearing a thick coat, a scarf, and gloves, but he still shivered.

“Cold?” Sorey scooted in to erase the distance between them and lifted the blanket Mikleo held around himself.  “Let me get in there.”

"Yeah, I guess I could have picked a better activity for this time of year."  He didn’t pull away.

Sorey decided to take a chance and put his arm around Mikleo’s shoulders. "Does that help?" It was perfectly fine that way, totally innocent.  He was just trying to keep Mikleo warm. Nothing wrong with that, right?

Mikleo leaned against him.  Sorey thanked his own stars for that.  His head fit just right on his shoulder, like it belonged there.  "Sorey, I um," he started to say.    


“Yeah?”

Mikleo was stammering and mumbling so softly that it was almost unintelligible.  "I like the things that uh, that we do together, and stuff.  Like this.  And um."  He stopped and took a deep breath.  "Eh, I mean, I'd like to...  I mean, I want--"    


Sorey raised an eyebrow.  Was he really trying to…?  He refused to hope for it to be true, in case he was entirely wrong.  “You want what?”

"It's not that I  _ want _ something I mean, that's not what I meant to say," he laughed nervously and rubbed his gloves together.  "I just mean it would be cool if, and totally cool if not too, just..."  He took another deep breath and swallowed so hard Sorey could hear it.    


"Ireallywouldliketobeboyfriendswithyouokay???"  He spat it all out at once and then covered his face up with the blanket.  His voice was tiny and muffled under the thick cover.  "It's totally okay if not too though I mean  _ no pressure _ ."  Then there was nothing but nervous laughter and shaking.

Sorey wondered if Mikleo just said that, or if he’d dreamed the whole thing.  He sat wordlessly, trying to process it.  He’d been thinking about it, ever since his conversation with Rose.  He already knew the answer.  He’d known it for two months.    


“Hey,” he said, and pulled the blanket away from Mikleo’s face.  "Look at me."

Mikleo managed to pull down the blanket, but perhaps asking for direct eye contact was too much.  "I'm so sorry, Sorey.  I've never even been on a date before, I don't know how to do this.  But I can't just keep pretending like I don't feel that way, I can't do that."

“Don’t apologize,” Sorey said, brushing a piece of his hair back into place.  “There’s nothing to be sorry for.  You…”    


He trailed off.  It wasn’t as if he’d done very much of this either, and he was at a loss.    


“You’re…”    


What could he say?  What could he do to match the bravery Mikleo had shown him tonight?   
  
Words wouldn’t be enough.  He cupped Mikleo’s chin in his hand, and did something he thought he’d never do.  He kissed Mikleo.


	10. Stars Align (2)

Mikleo got half-way through an utterance of Sorey’s name before his brain registered what was happening. Did this mean yes? It sure would be a weird way to say no. He realized his eyes were still open and he pressed them closed. That’s what you were supposed to do, right?

He felt the touch of Sorey’s hand as it slid across his cheek. Sorey pulled his lips away but stayed so close he couldn’t see much but a blur of his features in front of his face.

“Yes,” Sorey said. “Yes, I will be boyfriends with you.”

“Did you have to say it that way?” Mikleo groaned, remembering his poor word choice from earlier. He wanted to hide in the blanket again. But Sorey was kissing him again then, and so that didn’t matter.

He was more prepared the second time and let his lips go soft and smoosh against Sorey’s properly. It felt wonderful fonce he did, but he had to pull away. He had to see Sorey’s eyes for a moment. "This is worse than the whipped cream incident."

“It was cute.” Sorey held him and rubbed his shoulders tenderly, and he didn’t have to pretend it was for some other reason. Thatby itself

Mikleo hummed a happy sound into Sorey's shoulder. "You can't tell anyone this story, or if you do, you have to make me sound a lot more sophisticated."

“I’m going to tell _everyone_ this story,” Sorey said. “Come on, the way you set this up? It’s so romantic and well thought out. I’m impressed!”

“Yeah? So who do you think got the better present? I mean, seeing my mom is amazing but, this was a pretty good idea, too, right?"

"This is definitely the better present." Sorey pressed a kiss to Mikleo's cheek. "Because it gave me you."

Mikleo couldn’t stop himself from laughing. “That’s so corny.” Then he leaned in and touched his head to Sorey’s, fingering a piece of his brown hair with his gloves. "Come on, it's not fun if you don't at least put up a fight."

“Okay fine, mine was better because I'm pretty sure this wouldn't have happened without your mom. And your mom is here thanks to me. So therefore, your present is impossible without mine."

"There you go, there's a good argument. Causal relationship to the fact." Mikleo nodded, feigning consideration over the debate. "I guess the result of this analysis is that my mom is more awesome than both of us put together. I mean, she did produce me, after all."

"She may be great, but you've exceeded her. You’re the penultimate."

"I'll never concede to this, so we'll have to agree to disagree." His smirk faded away as he began to really think about their situation. "How is this going to work? I've never even been on a date before in my life, and I'm already living with my boyfriend. I feel kind of like we've been dumped into the last stage of a video game that we both suck at."

“So, pretty much any game?” He laughed at Mikleo’s pout at that, and rubbed his back for reassurance. "I guess we'll have to set certain boundaries?" Sorey seemed equally as lost on the subject, and that came as an odd sort of relief. "We'll have to be careful not to go too fast."

Mikleo grimaced when Sorey said that, knowing it would be the hardest part, at least for him. Less than pure thoughts about Sorey were already eating him up inside. "Right," he said. "So we'll each treat our separate spaces like we always have, and not like we're a couple living together." He put his fingers to his chin, thinking. "Although we do already buy groceries together, eat together, and watch all of our TV and movies together."

"We don't need to stop any of that. Those are roommate things." Sorey nodded sagely. “But rooms are still off limits.”

“Yeah, that would be bad…” Mikleo wandered off, thinking about what might happen if he was in Sorey’s bed again the way he was when Sorey was sick. If his face wasn’t already pink from the cold, it was worse now. "I just hope that if anything bad happens, that we can always be friends." He wasn’t certain how these feelings could simmer back down to normal friendship if things didn’t work out. But he knew he wanted to say it. "You're too important to me to lose."

"You're not getting rid of me that easily." Sorey’s hold around his waist tightened as he made the promise. "I don't care what happens, I'm here to stay."

Those words filled him with such relief, he sighed and sank into Sorey’s embrace. He shifted his weight to wrap his arms around Sorey’s neck and hold him tight. "My pole star," he said in a whisper, then immediately wished he hadn’t.

"We're waxing poetic now? I can go with this." Sorey gave Mikleo another kiss on the cheek before clearing his throat and continuing in a solemn tone. "My darling has the fair skin of a maiden, hair as white as pure snow and violet eyes lit like a tiger's."

"W-what?" He'd be quicker witted to make fun of how bad it was, but he was too embarrassed to think. "Damn it, Sorey... a m-maiden?" He coughed. "And since when do tigers have violet eyes?"

"Shh, I'm working here," Sorey said, patting Mikleo on the head and ignoring the criticisms. "His beauty is true but it's not just skin deep. Inside and out he is radiant, lighting up my life."

Mikleo hid his face in Sorey’s shoulder. "I regret everything. "

"You'll have to find some way to shut me up. Just telling me isn't going to do it.” He went on. “His intelligence is as sharp as a knife."

Mikleo was too offended by the bad poetry to care that Sorey was teasing him. His head snapped up. "Sharp as a knife? Super original, never heard that one before! Am I also quick as a whip and cute as a button?"

“You said it, not me.” Sorey could hardly stop laughing long enough to belt out more terrible lines. "He speaks of the stars, although they are so far; alas, for their shine does not nearly match his brightness."

“Shut up!” At this point Mikleo had noticed the shit-eating grin on Sorey’s face and knew that he was egging him on. It occurred to him what Sorey is trying to get him to do, and the idea made the back of his neck feel hot despite the freezing weather. He wasn’t sure if he could do it, but he couldn’t let Sorey win at _anything_.

He grabbed Sorey’s collar and pulled him down into a kiss so hard that their mouths knocked together and he jolted back again. “Ow!”

“Ouch geez,” Sorey laughed. “Someone’s eager.”

“I didn’t know that would happen!” He wiped his mouth and checked his teeth to make sure he hadn’t cracked anything. Fortunately, the collision sounded worse than it had been. It was all soft and nice when Sorey did it, why was his attempt so poor? "H-how did you do it?"

“You have to relax and stop trying so hard,” Sorey said. He placed his hands on Mikleo’s shoulders and pulled him in again, slowly this time. "Just kind of do it, don't think about it."

They were kissing again and Mikleo was still tense. He didn’t know how not to think about things. He inhaled deeply through his nose. Sorey smelled so good, like shampoo or cologne or whatever, he didn’t know, but iIt made his head spin and he relaxed into it.

“There you go,” Sorey whispered against his lips before going in for more soft, short kisses that melted into one another.

Mikleo inhaled sharply through his nose wanting more, and felt the sting of cold air in his chest. Pawing at Sorey’s face and hair with his gloves didn’t feel right, it wasn’t close enough. He broke their kiss and pecked his cheek instead. “Are you getting cold?”

“A little.” He blew a warm breath onto his hands and rubbed them. “I don’t want to leave, though.”

“We could get back in the car,” Mikleo said. “It has one of those fancy… you know, like a skylight?”

“Sun roof?”

“Yeah, that.” Mikleo cleared his throat. The cold was interrupting his train of thought. “We could still see the stars from there.”

“Perfect.” Sorey stood and offered a hand to Mikleo.

Mikleo couldn’t wait to get his gloves off so that he could feel Sorey’s hand skin to skin. He stood as gracefully as he could in his big winter coat. “Here, I’ll go turn the car back on.”

“Okay, I’ll pick this stuff up.”

Mikleo tried to focus on the simple actions of opening the driver’s side door, turning the key, opening the sun roof, and setting the heater to a comfortable temperature. If he thought too hard about what he was doing, or what he was about to do, he might spontaneously combust.

“The back seat seems more comfortable.” The front had bucket seats with a console between them, and he wouldn’t be able to lean on Sorey’s shoulder like he had before.

“I agree.” Sorey grinned and opened the back passenger’s side. He sat down inside with all the blankets and the remaining cocoa, placing it in the back seat’s drink holder. “Come on and get in before you freeze.” He patted the seat next to him. On the opposite side, Mikleo shed his coat and gloves and jumped in, slamming the door shut. The car hadn’t had enough time to warm up again, and he was shivering.

“It’s not as spacious back here,” Mikleo said, as Sorey draped the blanket around his shoulders and rubbed him to help him warm up.

“Not a problem anymore, is it?”

Mikleo couldn’t disagree, as he found nuzzling into Sorey’s warmth quite comfortable. From the back seat, they had a great view of the sky through the sun roof with Polaris hanging over them. “This is the best.”

Another kiss warmed his cheek. “I think so, too.” Sorey hummed in contentment. “Thank you for everything.”

Without the layer of heavy coat between them, Mikleo could feel Sorey’s heartbeat as he leaned against him. He didn’t know that he could get Sorey’s heart racing like that, and made him feel proud of himself in a silly kind of way. “If I hadn’t said anything, would you have?”

“Eventually. There were times I almost said something, but I held back."

“Oh yeah?” A tiny, satisfied smirk pulled at his lips. “What times?” He poked Sorey’s ribs under the blanket.

“Hey, don’t poke me.”

“Don’t change the subject.”

“I wouldn’t be, if you weren’t poking me.”

“Ah!” Mikleo gasped as Sorey tickled his sides in retaliation. “Okay, okay! But I really want to know.”

Sorey let up on the tickle attack, and rest his arm around Mikleo’s waist instead. "Like when I was sick, I guess. You were being so nice to me, I almost came out with it right then."

“I guessed that might be it.” Remembering that night made him cringe. “That’s why I hid in my room, and that’s why I--”

“I figured it was something,” Sorey laughed without picking up on Mikleo’s discomfort over the memory. “I was just too loopy at the time to realize.”

Mikleo hid his face in his hands. Sorey should know that if they were going to be in a relationship. “I did something stupid.”

“Eh? Yeah? What did you do? It must be something good if you’re blushing like that.”

Mikleo turned his nose up in indignation. “It wasn’t good, it was bad,okay? You just looked so cute and happy, and I felt so bad that I went back on staying up with you, I... I might have um.... kissed you. Just a little! On the head." He made a low whining sound like might be about to die. "I felt so bad about it."

“Sheesh,” Sorey sighed. “The way you’re acting I thought it was going to be a lot worse. That’s no big deal. It’s not like you were taking advantage of my body while I was sleeping or something!”

Mikleo blushed harder. He could feel it all over his face. But Sorey only smiled laughed even more.

Maybe he could let that go. He sighed and sunk into Sorey’s shoulder again. "I probably did something stupid when I was sick too, but I can't even remember."

"You mostly just fell asleep with my arm around you," Sorey assured him, petting his hair. "The only really stupid thing you did was try to go to work, and Edna shut that down pretty fast."

"I'm a bit of a workaholic if you hadn't noticed." He had never liked being so short, but his height did lend to Sorey’s shoulder well. He hugged Sorey’s arm, letting himself stop worrying about what he looked like. "I guess I should thank you for making me stay home."

“You need to take breaks more often. I worry, you know.” Sorey pressed a soft kiss to Mikleo’s head, much the same way Mikleo had kissed him that one night. It send a shiver through his shoulders and his back. He thought he liked it even more than the passionate mouth-to-mouth kind they’d shared before.

“I could be convinced,” he said, and hummed happily as Sorey kissed him again, this time on the forehead.

"I'll take you out on dates." He combed Mikleo’s hair out of his face with his fingers. “I can’t afford the really nice places, but I’ll figure out something.” Mikleo realized that Sorey must have picked up on how much he liked these tender little kisses. “I’ll use my imagination.” A kiss to his cheek. “Because this was amazing.” Again, on the nose. “And I have to think of something just as good.”

“Sorey...” Unable to find any words to add, he pressed his lips against Sorey’s. He managed not to smack their skulls into each other this time.

Sorey kissed him back and tightened his arm around him to draw him in closer. A happy hum tickled Mikleo’s lips. Then his mouth opened against his, and he accidentally brushed his tongue across Sorey’s.

He pulled away, looking at Sorey wide-eyed. “Was that supposed to happen?”

"You can do that, yeah. Not everyone likes it, but you don't know until you try."

Mikleo huffed. “I-I knew that. Just didn’t want to get ahead of you, that’s all.”

“I’m pretty sure I can keep up with you.”

“Oh yeah?” It was completely a bluff. Mikleo was quite certain Sorey was more experienced than him in every kind of way.

“Yeah, show me some advanced moves. If you think you can.”

Mikleo tried to hide his anxiety over this matter, but he had really dug himself into a hole this time. This was beyond his scope of knowledge. Only one thing to do. Mikleo pulled his phone out and googled ‘how to kiss.’

“Did you just…” Sorey watched Mikleo reading. He’d found a wikihow page on the subject in the top results. "You really just looked that up," he said, finally. "You're amazing.”

Mikleo nodded sagely, reading along with a few studious _hm_ noises.

Sorey leaned in, hoping to get his attention back from the device. “Feel prepared now?”

"It's really not that complicated," Mikleo declared, putting his phone away.

"Now that you're educated, why not try it out?"

"Okay." Mikleo looked at Sorey's lips and formed his strategy. He wondered briefly if he should initiate again. It felt very good for him when Sorey started it, so that stood to reason, that maybe Sorey liked that too, providing he did not bonk into him and grate their teeth together. He tucked his legs underneath himself in the car seat to give him a little height, and cupped Soery’s face in his hands, holding him. He kissed Sorey slowly and softly, with his lips just barely parted, like he'd read.

Sorey matched his movements and kissed him back with gentle pressure, carefully responding. Kissing was nice, but the real thrill came when Sorey wrapped his arms around him and rubbed his back. It felt so good that Mikleo suddenly couldn’t remember the tips he’d just read. He pulled away to think.

“Is everything okay?”

Mikleo blinked down at Sorey from his few inches of height over him. “Yes, it feels nice.”

“Okay, so why did you stop?”

“I’m trying to figure out…” He couldn’t put into words what it was.

Sorey shook his head and gave him a smile. “You don’t have to follow a script, you know?”

“I know, it’s just,” He pouted. “You were right, I don’t know what to do.”

Sorey kneaded his shoulders. “Just do whatever feels right.”

Mikleo nodded. He put his arms around Sorey, petting his hair and kissing the top of his head. “Is it okay if I hold you like this?”

Sorey responded by wrapping his arms around his waist and nuzzling into his neck. “Yeah, that works for me.”

 

 

 


	11. Long Distance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorey and Mikleo are separated for the rest of the holidays, but share a meaningful phone call.

Mikleo laid in his bed, thumbing through articles on his phone.  The apartment was too quiet now that his mother was gone back home, and Sorey still wouldn’t be back from visiting his family for a few days.  There wasn’t any homework to do between semesters, and the coffee shop on campus was closed until school reopened.  His work study program for Lailah wouldn’t start until then, either.

Normally in this sort of situation he’d just read a book, but since reclassifying his relationship with Sorey as a romantic one, he had been clicking through self-help articles and sex columns, thinking how stupid most of it sounded, but eager for any little grain of knowledge on the subject that he could get.

And of course, it had to be right when he was educating himself on how anal sex worked that his ringer went off.  Sorey was calling him.    


He scrambled to close the window he was browsing as if Sorey could somehow see it if he answered while it was still up.  Then he took a deep breath and tapped the icon to answer.  “Hello?”

“Hey!”  The sound of Sorey’s voice so excited on the other end made him smile and forget about the moment of anxiety.  “I had some free time and I wanted to spend it on you.”  He paused.  “If you’re free?”

“I can talk.”  Mikleo avoided the entire subject of just what he had been up to.  “I would have called you myself, but I wasn’t sure if you’d be around your family or what.  I know you don’t get to see them often.”

“Ah, it’s fine, uh,” he chuckled awkwardly.  “Gramps said I was daydreaming anyway.”

Mikleo chuckled.  “I bet you had that dopey look on your face.”  He wished he could see it right then.

“I’m not dopey,  _ you’re _ dopey.”

“Nice comeback.”  He was silent a moment, thinking about a nice extended family like Sorey’s. “I’m glad they seem to approve of your relationship status.”

“They’re ecstatic, to be honest. I was going to show them a picture of you, but on second thought I figured I better not.”

“Huh?  Would they object to how I look like for some reason?”

“No, no, not at all.  It’s just that if they see how gorgeous you are, I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“I-I’m not…  Sorey...” 

“Don’t even try to say you’re not,” Sorey scolded him.  “But more over, this  _ boyfriends _ thing is still new to us.”  He sighed.  “I haven’t even told Rose about us yet.  I want it to be just our thing, for a little while longer, just you and me.”

“Me too.”  Mikleo rolled over and curled into his blankets, wishing Sorey was there.    


“And I don’t want a million relatives telling me I better marry this one before he gets away, or something equally as embarrassing.”

“Ha, so you have a pretty big family, huh?”

“Usually it’s just Mom and Gramps, but because of the holidays, now all my aunts and uncles are here and they hover around me because I’m the baby of the family.”

“No other kids in your family, with that many relatives?”

“Nope, and I don’t hear the end of it, either.  Get married and have kids, Sorey!”

“D-do you ever want to have kids?”

“Wow, we’ve been dating for four days and you’re asking about kids, huh?”

“I’m just curious!  You don’t have to make it weird!”

Sorey laughed hysterically for a moment and had to recollect himself with a big sigh. “Well, I don’t think about stuff like that yet.  I’m just thinking about college, and my cute new boyfriend.”

“Do you really have to say things like that?”  He cleared his throat.  “Well I’m glad you have such a big happy family, at least.  Did you get a lot of gifts?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Sorey groaned, “but they’re all joke gifts, like stuff to cook with.  They tease me because they know I can’t cook!”

Then it was Mikleo’s turn to laugh.  “Ah, well bring them back here and I’ll use them.”

“Jokes on them, because this year I get to come home to an amazing chef.”

Mikleo sighed.  “Is this whole embarrassing compliments thing some sort of new relationship phase, or will you never stop?”

“Oh, you’re stuck with it.  There’s a lot more things I’d like to say, but I want to wait until we’re together again.”

“Yeah…”  Mikleo trailed off, thinking about when Sorey would finally be back.  “Sorey, do you think of this apartment as your home?”

“Of course! I mean, mom’s house will always feel like home, too.  But living there with you is home for me now.”

“Ah…”  Mikleo was glad Sorey wasn’t there to see him blushing at such a sentimental statement.  “What would you like for me to cook for you when you come home?”    


“Mmm, pasta?” Sorey sounded unsure.  “I mean everything you cook is so great.”  Then in a whisper,  _ “Even better than my mom’s.” _

“Don’t say that too loud or you could get into trouble.”

“It’s true.”

“Then I will make you a great pasta.”

“Can’t wait.”

They were both silent for a moment, feeling the distance between them, before Mikleo spoke again.  “Will you tell me something?”

“What?”

“Nothing specific, just anything.  This place feels so big and empty when you’re not here.  I miss your voice.”

“Ah ha…” Sorey sounded like he might be blushing now, too.  “Well, I don’t want to wait to tell you now, I feel like I’m bursting.”

“Okay, so tell me.”

"I just keep thinking about how cute you are in the morning, when you're all sleepy with tousled hair.  And how proud you are whenever you get an especially good grade. You get all smug.  And when you’re sleeping with your mouth open and you drool, haha."

“Th-that’s it?   _ That’s _ the thing you wanted to tell me?”

“Well yeah…”

“I don’t understand.  I don’t get it at all.”  Mikleo took a deep breath.  “You are always seeing me at my worst.  You must think I look silly or funny, right?”

“If that’s your worst, then nothing you do could be that bad.  But I’ve seen you at your best, too and I lo--” he stopped himself.  “And I  _ like _ all of it.”

Mikleo sighed and shook his head, although Sorey wasn’t there to see it.  “I lo-like you too, Sorey.”

“Uh, I guess that wasn’t exactly subtle, huh?”

“Our situation isn’t exactly normal.”  Mikleo laid back in his bed with the phone to his ear and closed his eyes. “It’s only been a few days, and I already-- ah, nevermind.  Why don’t you tell me some of your dumb poetry?”

Sorey cleared his throat.  "Your voice rings like bells in my ear," he recited, "and lets me know I have nothing to fear. My heart reaches out for yours, what more are we waiting for? Your beauty shines so bright I can see it from so far, like the stars you love in the sky above."

“Wow, that was a lot better.”

“You must really miss me, if you’re saying something almost nice about my poetry.”

“I do, I do miss you.  There’s stuff I want to say to you, too.”

“Can’t say it over the phone?”

“It’s not that, I just,” he sighed.  “I don’t know how to say it yet.”

“That’s okay.  Think about it a few more days, then tell me.”

“A few more days.”

Mikleo yawned but tried not to let Sorey hear him.  It was getting late on his end, but  he wanted to keep Sorey and listen to his voice for as long as his family could spare him.  “So, you owe me a date.”

“I do.”

“What did you have in mind?”

“Well, I figure I’ll take you to the fanciest restaurant I can find, and spoil the heck out of you.”

“Ah, you do know the way to a man’s heart.” 

“Now who’s being corny?”

They teased each other back and forth until early morning hours, when Mikleo nodded off for the third time. 

When he woke, the sun was out and his call with Sorey had ended.  A text left for him by Sorey said  _ good morning, sleepy head. _   
  
  
  



	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while since I posted fic, sorry! Con season has started for me, and my laptop died, I have to work from a tablet orz. So I hope this isn't too badly formatted. I can fix it better once I find a wireless keyboard or something.

“How’s your folks?” Rose asked.  Sorey didn’t say.  “Um, Sorey?”

 

“Oh!”  He looked up from staring vacantly through the car window.  “They’re fine.”

 

It was January 2nd.  The ride home from the airport had Rose wondering what Sorey’s deal was.  The other times, he was always a little sad to leave his parents behind.  The post-holiday depression would set in, diminishing the usually cheerful Sorey’s spirit.  But all of the sudden he was like a puppy with a waggy tail.  

 

“Did something happen over the holidays?”  

 

“Oh, uh…” Sorey started looking left and right in the passenger seat and rubbing his cheek with his index finger in that way that always gave him away.  “Can I tell you later?”

 

Rose rolled her eyes.  “Oh gee, I wonder what it could be.”

 

“Come on, Rose!”

 

“Okay okay, enjoy your little honeymoon.”

 

\- - -

 

At the front door of the apartment, Sorey’s hands shook and he dropped his keys.  “Dang it.”  He focused on getting the door open, and finally achieved success.  “I’m home!”  The smell of bacon enveloped him and his mouth started to water on the spot, but he (shockingly) was unconcerned with that.

 

Mikleo had  started  towards  the door before he opened it and had made it half across the living room.  He had a light blue collared  shirt on under a floppy grey sweater  that made him look even smaller somehow, and Sorey was blindsided by how cute this new article  of clothing  was.

 

Before  he could finish setting his luggage down, Mikleo’s arms were around him in a loose hug.  That wouldn’t work.  He dropped his bags and hugged Mikleo so hard that he was lifted off his feet, and spun him around.  “I missed you so much!”

 

Mikleo wailed through the entire spin.  "W-wait!  Sorey!  Sorey, put me down!"  Once Sorey was done and set Mikleo back firmly on his feet, he pushed his glasses back into place and brushed off his sweater.  “I missed you too, but please…”

 

“Ah, sorry.” He pulled Mikleo to him gently this time, cupping the back of his head against his shoulder.  He felt Mikleo breathe deeply against him and curl his arms around his waist.  Sorey held him in return, and hoped he wouldn’t want to part from this embrace for a long time.

 

“How was your flight?” Mikleo asked, loosening his arms enough to look up and make eye contact with Sorey.  “Do you need anything?”

 

Sorey smirked just so that the corny dialogue he was about to deliver would be all the more unbearable.  “All I need is you.”

 

"What a nice thought.”  Mikleo tried to hide the grimace, but that only made it adorable.  "I was thinking more along the lines of food, or maybe a nap."

 

“No way am I gonna nap now.”  He was tired, but how could he sleep with so much Mikleo to catch up on?  “Food sounds great, though.”  The smell in the air had been a far second concern after getting a proper hug from Mikleo, but it was creeping up in priority with every whiff.

 

“I figured that, so I started cooking as soon as I got your text that Rose picked you up.”

 

“Nice!”  His stomach agreed with a grumble.  He kissed Mikleo on the cheek and allowed him to walk ahead of him into the apartment.  “Hmm, it smells like breakfast.”

 

“Spaghetti carbonara,” Mikleo explained from the kitchen, putting on his apron.  “I think you’ll like it.”

 

“My nose already likes it.”

 

“Sit down at the table, I’ll bring it to you.” 

 

Sorey did.  Mikleo only had to finish tossing the noodles in the sauce and joined him at the table with a plate of yummy-looking stuff.  He set it down and then sat in the chair on the side of the table next to Sorey, rather than across as usual.  Sorey liked the subtle change this new relationship status allowed.  

 

It made leaning in to kiss his cheek so much easier.  “Thank you,” he said.  Then he dug in.  It had a fancy name, but it tasted like breakfast spaghetti, and it was awesome.

 

Mikleo waited until Sorey had a mouth stuffed with pasta to kiss him back.  “I’m glad you like it.  Cooking just isn’t that satisfying unless you’re here to eat it with me.”

 

Sorey hummed a muffled laugh.  "Oh Mikleo, that got me right in the heart," he said, putting a hand over his chest. "Warm and fuzzy."

 

His reward for that was a punch in the arm.  “Only because you make such a dumb happy face!”

 

“I don’t make dumb faces.”

 

“You do.  You get a curly smile on your face when you’re eating and squint your eyes like one of those internet cats.”

 

“Like a cat?  Do you like cats?”

 

“Cats are fine.”

 

"But you like me better than cats, right?"

 

Mikleo got that cute kind of smug look on his face like he did when he made a perfect grade.  “Wouldn’t keep you around if I didn’t.”

 

“Aw Mikleo, you’re being kinda mean to me.”

 

Once Sorey’s plate was empty, Mikleo rose to fetch something else from the kitchen.  “Am I? Well, I’ll make it better with ice cream.”

 

“You knew I'd want some, huh?"

 

Mikleo scooped the bowl for him just the way he liked, no toppings, and served it to him at the table.  Sorey felt so special, so cared for, he wanted to smother Mikleo with a million kisses.  But then his ice cream might melt, not to mention Mikleo would probably object.

 

Then Mikleo stood behind him and played with his hair while he ate it, and he wished it even more.  He practically inhaled the ice cream, hoping for the opportunity to kiss Mikleo as many times as he wanted.

 

"Without school, work, or you around to goof off with, I've been pretty bored here since my mom went home."  As he spoke, his fingers toyed with shocks of Sorey’s thick brown hair.

 

Sorey leaned back into him.  He didn’t mind being likened to a cat, if it meant Mikleo would pet him like this.  “If I get up to take my plate away, do you promise to keep doing that when I come back?”

 

“If you like it then I will.” Mikleo’s voice was bashful when he said it and his cheeks tinted pink.  Sorey thought his heart might burst out of his chest.  

 

He insisted on helping Mikleo with the kitchen since he couldn’t just let him do all the work.  He scooped up plates to put into the dishwasher and let the pan soak. 

 

“All done!”  He took Mikleo’s hand and led him to the living room.  “Now it’s time to just relax.”

 

“I agree.”  Mikleo laughed.  "I'm surprised you don't get a headache, eating ice cream so fast."

 

“Well you see, I’m immune to ice cream headaches.”

 

“Sure you are.”

 

Sorey crashed into the couch and Mikleo sat down gingerly beside him.  He grinned and slipped his arm around Mikleo’s waist to pull him in even closer.  Mikleo nestled into him just right, his head at a perfect height to rest on his shoulder.

 

“I’m surprised your family let you go.  They all seem to miss you so much.”

 

“I miss them too, but school is important, you know?  Even if it is far away.  They understand .”  

 

"Kinda nice to have a little distance too, right?  I mean, I love my mom and I miss her all the time, but she'd be meddling hardcore if she lived really nearby."

 

“I’m grateful for your mom’s meddling, but maybe not all the time, yeah.”  Sorey yawned. 

 

"If you're still tired from the jet lag, you can lie down."

 

He hadn’t gotten much sleep the previous night, the flight left so early.  Laying down sounded really good.  Especially with Mikleo.  “Only if I can stay with you.”

 

Mikleo shook his head in dismay as if he’d been expecting something like that.  He patted his thighs that were thinly covered by his worn in jeans.  “Lie down here.”

 

Sorey didn’t need to be invited twice.  He leaned over and let his head fall into Mikleo’s lap.  “Comfy,” he said, nuzzling against his legs.

 

Mikleo went back to playing with his hair, running gentle fingers across his scalp.  “Did you think I’d be all skin and bones?”

 

Sorey shook his head and hummed his disapproval. “No, I knew how soft you were already from when we were cuddling in the car.”

 

“Hm.”  Mikleo looked down at Sorey’s legs.  “Go on and kick your shoes off, put your feet up.”

 

Sorey let his tennis shoes thunk to the floor and stretched out, feet propped up on the armrest of the couch.  He looked up at Mikleo.  Sometimes it was hard to believe how pretty his face was, especially when he smiled at him the way he was right then.

 

Mikleo brushed Sorey’s hair with one hand, and the other rest on his stomach.  It tickled a bit the way his fingers barely touched him, timidly tracing the line of definition down his abdomen, before settling into a comfortable weight just below his belly button.  “You’re not so soft,” Mikleo said.  

 

“I never have been, not even when I was little.”  

 

“I’m envious,” Mikleo said, but the twinge of his lips seemed more appreciative than jealous.  His fingers slipped under the hem of Sorey’s shirt and began to drum against the bare skin of his belly.  “What do you do to stay in shape like this?”

 

Sorey shivered at that touch.  It surprised him a bit, but that wasn't a problem.  “Just exercise,” he said.  It was never something he did for vanity, he honestly enjoyed the physical activity.  He had noticed people looking at him before, but hadn’t thought much about it until it was Mikleo looking at him.  “I’ve been slacking since school started, I better get to it again before I get squishy.”

 

“Edna could always put you to work.”  The touch of his hand on Sorey’s belly began to scratch him gently, the same motion as the fingers in his hair.  

 

“I don’t know how you work and go to school. It’s...”   It felt like pure bliss, what Mikleo was doing.  It was interrupting his train of thought.  

 

The motion of Mikleo’s hand slowed to a halt.  “Is it okay, the way I’m touching you?” 

 

“Definitely,” Sorey said, quick to reassure him.  He wanted him to continue, but to what end, he was not certain.  It wasn’t quite sexual, but it was far from platonic, either.  “I’m just not sure how to react, I guess."  

 

Mikleo took a moment to process that.  Sorey wondered why it was a subject that needed so much considering, but thought it best to wait for Mikleo’s conclusion.

 

“Have none of your partners ever touched you like this?” he asked, after his internal deliberation.  “Is it a weird thing to do?”

 

Sorey almost laughed.  “Partners?”

 

“Yes, partners,” Mikleo repeated, sounding more annoyed.  “That’s one of the things I wanted to ask you about, but I wasn’t sure if we’d been together long enough to pry.”

 

“You can ask me anything."

 

Mikleo cleared his throat and stuttered a bit.  “H-how many?  You don’t have to be specific, I just wanted a general idea.”

 

“How many what?”

 

“How many people have you been with?”

 

Sorey felt it would be a great time to mess with him, but he couldn't  stop himself  from giggling.  "Nobody," he laughed.  "I mean I dated people  in high school but not like you're  thinking."

 

"How’s  that even..."  Mikleo looked  at  him  like an unsolvable  math problem.  "Did you  just not want to?"

 

"Why's it such a shocking  discovery?  I've always  been a big nerd."

 

"Yeah, but you're--" he cut himself off mid-argument.  

"I'm what?"

 

Mikleo pretended to be resting his arm on the couch but Sorey could easily  read it as an excuse  to turn his head away, his face was all flushed up red again. "Y-you're model-level attractive."

 

It took a second for him to process  that.  It was so un-mikleo-like to give him a sarcasm-free compliment, and that was such a ridiculous one.  From his position in Mikleo’s  lap, he could see him very clearly  fussing with his hair like he knew he'd just said something embarrassing.

 

He lifted his hand to push Mikleo’s  bangs out of his face.  "Well you're *super*model attractive."

 

That earned him Mikleo’s glance back.  He frowned.  "Don't be ridiculous."

 

Sorey pretty much knew Mikleo wouldn't take the compliment, but he feigned surprise.  "Ri-*what*-ulous?"

 

"Dick!  Ridiculous!"

 

Sorey burst into uncontrollable snickers and it took him a while to calm down.  Then for a moment laid there comfortably in Mikleo’s lap and quiet set in, a moment in which they both must be considering the future, Sorey thought.

 

Mikleo's hand resumed the sweet gesture against his belly.  Sorey sighed.  "I kissed a few times," he said slowly, remember in how forced those situations had been.  "I thought if I tried it I'd like it eventually."

 

"But you didn't?"

 

Sorey stroked Mikleo’s cheek, then he brushed his thumb over his lips.  Mikleo allowed it, surprisingly, without looking away.   "Just you," Sorey said.  "I liked it when it was you."

 

"I'm glad."  

 

Behind his black-rimmed glasses, Mikleo’s eyes appeared more radiant than ever when paired with a mild smile that barely pulled at his lips.  The redness in his face faded, leaving just the tint in his cheeks.  

 

Sorey wanted to kiss him, but was caught up in staring.  "You don't mind I'm not the experienced lover you made me out to be?

 

"I must be selfish.  I prefer it this way."

 

"Why selfish?"

 

"I would have been okay if you had been with other people before, but I want some of your firsts for myself."

 

"Well, rest assured this is the first romantic belly-scratching I've ever experienced."

 

Mikleo laughed.  He leaned down low until his hair shadowed their faces, and pressed his lips to Sorey’s.  Sorey remembered about the taste of his mouth and the way that he smelled.  He dug his hands into Mikleo’s hair and raised his head to deepen the kiss.

 

Mikleo's hand on his stomach slid to his side and started to rub him more aggressively with just the tips of his fingers until it wasn't a lover's touch at all, it was a tickle attack.

 

"Not fair!"  he said in a squeal, back arcing protectively to push Mikleo off.  

 

Mikleo laughed and tried to overpower him, but Sorey was the bigger man.  He caught Mikleo's wrists and lifted himself up on the couch to scoop him, up and pin him down underneath him with his knees straddled over him.

 

Now with their positions flipped, he looked down into Mikleo’s eyes and thought of all the kinds of things he'd like to do with him, and the one big thing he was still unsure about.  It would be like this, wouldn't it?  Except maybe Mikleo’s legs would be over his...

 

He felt the same sensation as before when Mikleo touched him, of being unsure how to feel, and pushed the idea as far back in his mind as it would go.  

 

He raised Mikleo's hand to his lips.  "I want to try something, is it okay?"

 

Mikleo looked back at him confused, but nodded in agreement.

 

He opened his mouth and closed his lips around Mikleo’s index and middle finger.  This earned him a small gasp of surprise from Mikleo, who held his breath as he struggled to keep his cool about this.

 

Sorey wished he wouldn’t.  He wished Mikleo would throw back his head and lose it.

 

"I..."  His voice had a breathy quality to it Sorey definitely liked.  "I thought that stuff about you being naturally warm was bullshit but--" 

 

Sorey responded by pulling Mikleo’s fingers out of his mouth and licking them slowly.

 

“I didn’t know that my hands were so..." he covered his face with the other hand, but couldn't conceal his blush with it.  

 

Sorey pulled his hand away and kissed him, this time parting his lips, and Mikleo let him in.  Their tongues slid together.  Their faces were so close that Mikleo’s glasses pushed half way off his face.  Sorey stopped momentarily to lift them from his face and lay them safely on the coffee table.  Mikleo looked up at him as if he'd just performed the sweetest act in human  history.  The world as a whole had been neglectful in treating Mikleo well, he thought, if such a small kindness impressed him like that.

 

Sorey remembered this kind of kiss being the ultimate goal of middle school makeouts.  He'd done it just to impress friend, but it was gross.  That hadn’t changed much in high school, and in college he just plain didn't have the time.

 

But Mikleo really was different.  Because it was Mikleo, the hair stood up on the back of his neck and every movement of their mouths felt soft and sweet.

 

He pulled his head away, suckling at Mikleo's bottom lip.  Mikleo gasped a breath and then lapped his own tongue against Sorey’s as if to say yes, more like that, please.

 

Sorey pushed back in, aware at that moment of Mikleo’s hands sneaking up his sides.  But instead of tickling, they gathered the fabric of Sorey’s shirt in fists over his chest, holding him tight.

 

He knew that he was approaching *too far* sooner than he anticipated, but in the moment that mattered less than it had before Mikleo was soft and pliable under him.  He slipped his hands under Mikleo’s shirt and drew circles on his stomach with his thumbs as he held his hands around his waist.  Mikleo was so thin, his hands almost encircled his waist.

 

Mikleo was pliant, he followed Sorey’s movements with confidence.  Sorey caressed his cheek and brushed his hair out of his face.  

 

Soon they were chest to chest with their legs interlocked, no space between them.  This led to the inevitably that it would not be enough.

 

Mikleo murmured and pulled away.  He huffed a frustrated breath.  Sorey knew why.  With their bodies melded into each other, it was hard not to notice his arousal.  Sorey was sure Mikleo could feel his, too.   

 

"Should we stop?" He didn’t want to, but he knew that once the blood returned to his brain, he would regret it if he didn't.  

 

"I really like it, that's not the problem."

 

"I know. It's because..."  He made a vague gesture that could mean anything, but was intended to refer to their mutual physical states.

 

"Maybe just a break."

 

Sorey leaned off him and helped him up so that they were sitting side by side again.  "Sorry, I got carried away," he laughed.  "You’re just too sexy, Mikleo."

 

He should have anticipated it, but saying that out loud forced Mikleo’s systems to crash.  He stared blankly back at him, stuttering.

 

"Don't say stupid things."

 

"It's not stupid."  Sorey tried not to get offended because he understood that Mikleo wasn’t to blame for his state of mind, but it hurt to be doubted all the same.  "Mikleo, I think you're really attractive."

 

"But I'm short," Mikleo said flatly, as if it were a matter of fact.  "And I'm pale, and I don't have any muscle mass.  I'm pretty much the opposite of an attractive male.  It's hard enough to think that you like my personality, much less that..."  

 

Sorey couldn't help be dumbfounded.  "I don't care if you're short or tall," he said.  "And I don't care if you can lift me off the ground."

 

Mikleo stared at his hands?  "Other boys used to tease me."

 

Sorey groaned.  He hadn’t considered it before, but had he been a smaller, more feminine boy, he would have his own share of bullies.  It must be hard for Mikleo to open up about it.

 

He took Mikleo’s hands.  "While I was visiting my parents, I saw a shop with purple irisis in the window.  They made me think of how beautiful your eyes are.  They’re my favorite flowers now."

 

Mikleo buried his face in Sorey’s shoulder.  "I'd love to give you flowers someday."

 

Sorey wrapped his arms around him, and held him close.  It was a different kind of bliss, lacking the burning passion from before, but equally wonderful in its own subtle way. "I'd like that."

 

Mikleo lifted his head.  Sorey was pleased to see him smiling again.  "Is it strange for two people who are attracted to each other not to jump right into bed?"

 

"I don't think is is, do you?"

 

"If you wanted to, I might also want to..."

 

"Might? So you're not sure."  He shook his head, then kissed Mikleo’s cheek to reassure him.  "Let's wait until we're both completely sure."

 

"All right." 

 

"Is that everthing you wanted to ask me? That you couldn't say on the phone."

 

"I think so, I mean, I was probably just over thinking it."

 

Sorey chuckled.  "Don't go looking up any more 'how to' websites, okay?"

 

"Uhh..."

 

It was too late, but that was okay if it made Mikleo more confident.  Sorey hugged Mikleo tight and kissed the top of his head.  "Want to watch Cosmos?"

 

Mikleo smiled.  "That sounds good."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	13. Chapter 13

Mikleo let steam escape from the hall bathroom as he darted across to his bedroom in his fluffy robe. Sorey’s door was still closed, so he must still be getting ready.

Flipping through his closet failed to present him with any new options. He had never thought dating was in his future, so keeping a few special things just for dates hadn’t occurred to him before. He ended up with an outfit that Sorey had seen him wear many times over.

But he had to let that be what it was and moved on. 

\- -

Sorey slicked his hair back on one side, then both sides, then messed it up again. Nothing looked right in his mirror. Rose had helped him pick out a formal jacket, but he thought his reflection looked like a cheesy yearbook picture. 

There was still a bottle of cologne given to him as a Christmas present from Alisha on the counter in front of the mirror. Soon as they saw each other again after holiday break she asked “does Mikleo like it?” He hadn’t even told her that they we officially dating yet. 

She seemed disappointed that he hadn’t broken the seal. Fragrance really wasn’t his thing. Mikleo seemed okay with the way he smelled as-is. But it was a date after all, so he opened it. It had the typical manly smell, but not too strong, so he tried it on.

He looked at the time on his phone. Even Mikleo, fussy as he was, would be ready before him at this rate. He had to just hope he could spoil Mikleo enough that his appearance wouldn’t matter.

He opened his bedroom’s door and found that Mikleo was ready after all, standing in the hall and picking out a coat. As soon as he saw Sorey he stopped what he was doing and looked up. His eyes lingered for a long time. 

“I look silly, huh?” 

“No, I was just thinking…” Mikleo folded his arms and looked away. Always cute when he did that. “Red makes your eyes stand out, that’s all.”

“My mom says that too,” Sorey chuckled. He was wearing a red button down shirt she picked out because he trusted her fashion sense a lot more than his own. “Anyway, I must look okay if you’re complimenting me.”

Mikleo huffed. “You act like I don’t.” He closed the space between them and began to undo and fix Sorey’s tie. 

Sorey laughed and took a moment to just look at him. Mikleo always dressed nice, but today he was prettier than usual. When he was well rested, his skin looked brighter. The lighting in their hall wasn’t even that good, and his eyes were sparkling. 

He leaned in to kiss his cheek. “You look great, but it’s not like that’s a surprise.”

Mikleo rolled his eyes and let out an “uhg,” but he was blushing already and the night had only started. “Let me get a coat for you, it looks like it may snow again.”

“No no,” Sorey said, and used his arm to block Mikleo from the closet. “I’ll do it, I’m taking you out on this date, remember?”

That earned him a heavy sigh. Mikleo conceded, but not without making his annoyance known. 

Sorey grinned, but his victory was short-lived soon as he saw the five different coats Mikleo owned. “Ahh, which one?” But before Mikleo could open his mouth to boss him around any, he made a quick decision and settled on a navy blue one. “Here, this one matches your outfit.” Mikleo was wearing light blue and grey, after all. He took the coat off its rack and held it open for him.

Mikleo shut his mouth before saying anything, and merely narrowed his eyes at Sorey as he lifted his arms and stepped into the coat. “Happy?”

“Very much.” Mikleo didn’t give control over to Sorey very often, but Sorey loved it when he did. It reminded him of the time he helped Mikleo zip his maid costume up in the back. His skin had been so soft then. His mind wandered to other things he could see himself doing for Mikleo, like fixing the clasp on a bracelet for him, or sliding a ring onto his finger. 

“Are you going to put your coat on?” Mikleo asked flatly, staring up at him.

“Oh!” His errant thoughts reminded him suddenly about presents. He dashed back into his bedroom, leaving Mikleo very confused in the hallway.

\- -

A moment later, Sorey returned and was holding the most ridiculous bouquet of roses, smiling like an idiot. “I got you flowers!” 

Mikleo sighed and shook his head. “I told you I wanted to get you some.” 

“You already got the first date,” Sorey said, extending the roses to him. They gave off a relaxing wave of sweet fragrance. “I had to make sure that I am the first flower-giver for sure.”

“All right,” he sighed. He took the flowers into the kitchen. “Just pick out a coat.”

The kitchen wasn’t stocked with any kind of vase, so he took a ceramic pitcher and used that. “This is a full dozen,” he said. “You really didn’t have to do that.”

Sorey pouted, arm half-caught in his coat. “You don’t like them?”

“I didn’t say that.”

Sorey stepped into the kitchen with him and lifted one of the flowers out of the vase. Mikleo watched him take a knife from their drawer and slice the thorns away from its stem. Then he smiled his usual goofy smile and slipped the rose behind Mikleo’s ear so that it decorated his hair. 

“I always think of your colors being cool tones,” Sorey said, “but this red looks really good against your skin, now that I see it.”

Mikleo allowed him a moment to enjoy his little gesture before he took the flower out of his hair and pinned it into his front pocket’s buttonhole instead. “Here, you’ve accessorized me, are you satisfied now?”

A smirk. “For now.”

Mikleo shook his head. “So are we going somewhere or not?”

“I have such an evening planned for you,” Sorey said, waving his arm theatrically. He kneeled. “Would you do me the honor of being my date tonight, lovely Mikleo?”

“I already said I would,” Mikleo huffed, turning red in the face. “And stop calling me lovely.”

\- -

 

It was snowing lightly when they left the apartment building, and the sun was going down. Sorey knew that Mikleo tended to be on the cold-natured side, so he put his arm over his shoulder to keep him close. They only had a few blocks to walk.

“I hope this place isn’t too expensive,” Mikleo said. “I’ve only seen it from the outside.”

“Don’t worry about that.” Sorey answered. He ruffled Mikleo’s pale hair, shaking out the snowflakes hidden in it. “I…”

Mikleo lifted his head, pouting at this sort of treatment. He had a sparkle of snowflake dust trapped in his eyelashes. It caught the light from the sun disappearing over the horizon with a prismatic effect for just a split second, and Sorey lost all the thoughts in his head. 

“Sorey?”

“H-huh?”

Mikleo’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “You sounded like you were going to go on.”

“Oh, sorry.” Sorey laughed softly. “Your eye had a rainbow in it for a second there, I got distracted.”

“A what?”

“Nevermind!” Sorey waved the thought away. “Look, we’re almost there!”

\- -

They entered the restaurant and Mikleo let Sorey take his coat for him. He had mixed feelings about this thing they were doing. It made him feel slightly emasculated to have Sorey treating him almost like a female date, but it made him kind of warm and fuzzy, too. There was also a third feeling, about Sorey taking his clothes off in any kind of way, that made him blush like a fool.

Entering the restaurant triggered Mikleo’s excitement for fancy eating, as they followed their hostess through to their table. He could see some of the dishes being eaten by other patrons and couldn’t make out much, but there were vibrant colors and pretty garnishes, and it smelled really good. 

She brought them to a table, and Sorey pulled Mikleo’s chair. Mikleo sat down as gracefully as possible. “Thank you.” 

Sorey blinked widely. “You’re thanking me!”

Mikleo huffed. “Well, you’re being kind so of course I would.”

Sorey laughed and sat down across from him. “I thought you hated being fussed over.”

The table was small enough for intimacy, and next to a window that looked out into a courtyard in the center of the block. The sunlight was almost gone, and the snow was illuminated by gold fairy lights. 

Mikleo leaned on his hand as he looked out at the snow falling. “I sort of do, but it’s weird. If it’s you then it’s okay.”

“Then that makes me happy.”

A waitress came to fill their glasses with water. “Goodness, you’ve both been in the snow,” she said, seeing the snow dust still clinging to their coats. “Would you like something to drink? A hot tea maybe?”

Sorey straightened up and puffed out his chest. “I would like to order,” he paused for emphasis, "a _wine_.”

“You don’t like wine, you nerd.”

“You don’t know that.”

Mikleo spared the poor waitress and decided not to retort at the risk of confusing her further. “Maybe you could make us some mimosas, or a sangria?”

Sorey blinked. “Are those alcohols?”

The girl smiled. “We have a very sweet peach sangria available tonight, I’ll bring it to you.” She smiled and left.

“ _Are those alcohols?_ ” Mikleo repeated in a teasing voice.

“Come on Mikleo, I don’t know much about that kind of stuff! I just turned twenty one just before we met.”

“I know. But still…”

“So, what’s sangria?”

“Wine with brandy and fruit.”

“So it’s different from the one I tried.”

“Yes. At Rose’s you had a very dry white. This will be completely different.”

“Well then, I hope I like it!”

They looked at the menus. They were printed on a smooth velum paper and trimmed with metal. “This place is fancy,” Mikleo said. “Maybe I’ll just get a pizza.”

“We eat pizza all the time. I brought you to a fancy place so that you could eat something fancy.”

“If you won’t take no for an answer, then…” He looked over the menu. “Could we try some stuffed squash flowers?”

“You look so cute when you ask like that.” 

Mikleo pouted. “Okay now I’m getting them for sure.”

The waitress returned with a pitcher of the peach sangria. It was a beautiful golden pink color with bright pieces of cut fruit swirling around in it with ice. “Have you decided yet?”

Sorey cut off Mikleo from ordering. “We would like an appetizer of your squash blossoms, please.”

“Sure. I can get your entrees when I come back.”

She walked away and Mikleo went back to pouring his drink and looking over the menu. 

Sorey tasted the glass he poured for himself and licked his lips. “This is really good! I thought all drinks were going to taste kind of terrible.”

“Remind me not to get you into cocktails,” Mikleo said. “Unless you want to get on the floor drunk.”

Sorey just shook his head at that. “I think I’m going to have this.” He tapped the menu in his hands. “Perfectly cooked steak in a garlic butter wine sauce with asparagus.”

“Sounds like you. Then I’ll get,” he looked over the list for something special but not outrageously expensive. “Tea smoked duck.”

Sorey read off the menu. “Half a peking duck smoked in Chinese black tea with ginger jasmine rice.”

The waitress returned and they placed their orders with her. Sorey stared at the plate in front of them, interested. It was a set of four yellow blossoms, stuffed with a goat cheese blend and deep fried until crispy.

“Pretty, isn’t it?” Mikleo asked. He took a bite of one.

“Yeah.” Sorey picked up one blossom and examined it. “I didn’t know it was really going to be a whole flower.”

 

“It’s good,” Mikleo said, after swallowing a mouthful. “Eat it.”

Sorey shoved it in his mouth whole and started chewing. His expression went from skeptical to pleased after a few chews. “Wow, it’s crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside,” he said, chewing.

“Please don’t talk and eat,” Mikleo sighed.

It took a minute for Sorey to finish chewing the huge bite and swallow. “That is good,” he said. “Oh! I forgot that I was going to tell you--”

“Yeah?”

“Your mom friended me on FaceBook.” Sorey laughed. “She’s really sweet.”

“Oh geez, I don’t even use FaceBook and you’ve got my mom?”

“Yeah, and she wants to show me some pictures of you!”

A long groan escaped Mikleo’s mouth. “Embarrassing…”

“Do you think she’ll show me baby pics or something? Because that’s what my mom would do.”

“The ones she likes to show to people are of me in homemade clothes at about age five.”

“That doesn’t sound too bad.”

“She used to make outfits for me,” Mikleo went on. “When I was little she worked at a fabric store and didn’t make much, but she sewed all my clothes from remnants that were being thrown out. It was really… loud...”

“But you and your mom both seem to have really good taste in clothes,” Sorey said. He was drinking the sangria faster than perhaps he ought to. Mikleo made a mental note not to let the waitress refill it. “It couldn’t have been that bad.”

“May as well tell you since I can’t stop it,” Mikleo grumbled on. “She would patch together different fabric pieces and then make me little suits.”

“Suits?” Sorey repeated, a little too loud. “That’s amazing! I bet you were so cute, Mikleo.”

Mikleo hung his head. “You’ll get to see eventually I’m sure.”

“Did you have little bow ties, too?”

“...Yes.”

Sorey gigggled. “I can’t wait.”

They were about done eating their appetizer when the main course came. Mikleo almost drooled from the smell, it was so deep and savory. He could smell Sorey’s garlic steak, too. “Looks amazing.”

They bit in and each made equally pleased sounds. 

“We have to come here again,” Sorey said. “This is delicious.”

“It’s awfully expensive though,” Mikleo sighed. “I know, I’m not going to make a big deal out of it, but we can’t do this again any time soon, whether you have the money or not.”

“Maybe one big splurge once a year,” Sorey said with a smile. “We can try a fancy restaurant every year just like this after Christmas.”

Mikleo put his fork down for a moment. At that statement, warmth blossomed in his chest. He closed his eyes and wanted to savor this moment for just a second longer, so that he could remember it.

“Something wrong?”

He opened his eyes. “No, just…” He smiled fondly at Sorey. The words he wanted to say didn’t come easily enough, so leaned across the table to kiss him.

This took Sorey by surprise. They were in a public place, and Mikleo wasn’t usually the one to initiate passionate kisses, besides. But he couldn’t help it. Sorey just had to be kissed right then.

He pulled away from Sorey, who looked at him confused, but smiling and blushing ear to ear. “What was that for?”

“You said we’d be together next year without a second thought.”

“Is that weird?”

“No, I like it.”

Sorey still seemed a bit lost at that, but he grinned and took another sip. “Then I’m happy, Mikleo.”

\- -

After the dinner, Sorey made sure that he ordered Mikleo a lavish dessert. It was a bananna infused creme brule with candied fruit and a swirly chocolate sculpture on top. 

“This reminds me of our first dinner together,” Mikleo said. 

Sorey definitely remembered that. The memory brought a laugh with it. “Oh yeah, we argued about desserts.”

“To be honest…” Mikleo looked into his cream delicacy as he chiseled out a precise bite with his spoon. “I couldn’t tell at first if you meant it to be a date or not.”

“Did it seem like one?”

“A little. I mean, I guess so. Or maybe I just wanted it to be because I liked you.”

Sorey chuckled and nudged Mikleo’s foot under the table. “You had a crush on me huh?”

“Don’t rub it in.” He turned his nose up in that indignant way that was so frustrating and too cute at the same time.

“I think I fell in love then too, but I didn’t know it yet.” Sorey had felt the same warmth in his heart back then, he just didn’t think too much about it.

Mikleo looked up, a little wide-eyed, with the spoon still in his mouth.

“Because,” Sorey continued. Maybe it was the alcohol, but he felt very close to Mikleo then and like he could say anything. He wanted to feel that way, and to be able to verbalize all of what was inside him. “I didn’t know what love was supposed to feel like.”

“What does it feel like to you now?”

The question surprised him, because Mikleo didn’t usually seem keen on talking about this kind of thing. He leaned his chin onto his hand, arm propped up on the table. “Like friendship but more,” he said, looking at Mikleo with the softest and fondest stare. 

“Hm.” Mikleo nodded sagely. “We were friends before and that didn’t change, but there’s definitely an undefinable element present now.”

“Also you’re hot,” Sorey whispered across the table. 

“And I think you’re drunk.”

“Nope.” Sorey would know if he were drunk for sure. “Just relaxed, and felt like telling you that.”

“Okay.” Mikleo reached across the table to dab Sorey’s mouth with his napkin. He supposed he’d left cream on his face. “Are you finished eating?”

“You bet, I’m so full.”

“Then let’s get the check and make our way home.”

\- -

The night was dark by the time they left the restaurant and the snow was falling harder. A pristine layer of it coated the sidewalk as they made their way back towards their apartment, leaving footprints that disappeared quickly under the falling powder. Mikleo could never get tired of watching it float down.

They stopped at a crossing light. Mikleo blew on his hands, wishing he’d brought gloves.

“Here let me,” Sorey said. He brought Mikleo’s hands up to his lips and blew on them, rubbing them between his. Both his skin and his breath were much warmer than Mikleo’s. 

“That’s nice, but how will we walk?”

“That’s a good question.”

The light turned and they had to move on. Sorey took Mikleo’s left hand in his and rubbed it as they walked. “Now when this one gets warm, we can change sides.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“People have told me that.”

It was a beautiful night despite the cold. Mikleo was starting to love snow. “I didn’t know how sparkly it was,” he said. “On TV it always looks matte white.”

“Yeah, under some lights it looks like crystal,” Sorey said, squeezing his hand. “That’s why I said I got distracted earlier.”

“A rainbow in my eye, huh?”

“You distract me always, rainbows or no rainbows.” 

Mikleo laughed loudly at that.

\- -

It wasn’t long before they reached their home, the cozy little apartment across campus from the school. Sorey was eager to get Mikleo inside. As ethereal as he was right now, standing in the drifting snow, he knew that Mikleo didn’t hold up very well in cold weather. 

He turned his back to open the door, taking his eyes off Mikleo for just a moment, and felt an impact against his neck. Cold, cold, cold. Snow going down his back. 

He turned to find Mikleo gleaming with mischief, snow still on his hands. “You’re gonna get it now,” he said, and knelt to scoop up the snow.

It was about nine at this time, and there were still a few people milling about on the road, but the yard in front of the apartment building was empty at the moment except for them. There wasn’t much grass, as most the lot had been used for parking, but there was a big tree and enough soft ground to run around on.

Mikleo ran to hide behind the tree just as Sorey threw the snowball, it splatted against the bark. 

“You’re not going to get away as easy as that!” Sorey went to scoop another snowball,and ended up with a snowball in the face. 

“Oh crap, I’m sorry!” Mikleo laughed, poking his head out from behind the tree. “I didn’t mean to… are you hurt?”

Sorey used his concern in an underhanded move to close the distance on him. “You’re not sorry at all, you snowball-throwing monster!” he shouted, and grabbed Mikleo by the hood. Mikleo squealed and tried to get away as Sorey shoved the snow directly down his back. 

“Ah, that’s not fair at all!”

Sorey pulled Mikleo to him and wrapped his arms around his waist, preventing any chance of escape. “Say uncle or I’ll shove one down your pants next.”

“I’ll never surrender,” Mikleo laughed, and pushed against Sorey. 

He hadn’t been expecting this kind of resourcefulness and tumbled backwards, landing in a pile of snow with Mikleo in his lap. It was soft, but the snow was starting to melt into his clothes. He worked to catch his breath, and the air stung his chest. “How about a truce?”

Mikleo shivered in his arms. His face was red from the activity and the cold. “I’ll agree to that.”

He helped Mikleo up, and lingered there, holding his hand. Mikleo looked at him with a question on his face. He answered it by putting his arms around him and pulling him into a kiss. He wanted to kiss him here, on the apartment building lawn, under a street light, with the snow falling over them. Mikleo’s lips were warm and his chest was still heaving from running around and laughing so much.

He wanted to stay there until they were both breathing deep and slow together, but it was too cold to let the moment draw out. He pulled away, and Mikleo seemed just as reluctant to stop. “Let’s go inside,” he said. “Let’s make hot chocolate and watch movies.”

Mikleo smiled. “It was a good date. Excellent attempt to outdo me.”

“Attempt?” Sorey laughed. “Not a success?”

They went back into their building hand-in-hand. “We can call it a draw.”


	14. Chapter 14

After having his breakfast and getting dressed, Mikleo left his bedroom once again. This time, he found Sorey standing in the kitchen yawning and rubbing his eyes, wearing his sleep shorts and an old Batman tee shirt. 

“What’s got you up so early?”

Sorey finished a big yawn with a stretch, then grinned. As he brought his arms down, he wrapped them around Mikleo’s waist. “Wanted to see you off today.” He kissed him on the cheek and held him tight, like he’d much rather stop him from leaving. 

“You’ve got pillow impressions on your face,” Mikleo said, returning Sorey’s kiss with a quick peck on the lips. “You should go back to bed.”

“Okay.” Sorey yawned again. “Good luck at work today.”

\- -

His first day as Lailah’s intern was starting, and Mikleo was glad to be free of the coffee stand’s hectic mornings.

He reached Lailah’s office and found the door cracked open. “Professor?” he called out into the room. It was neat and clean enough, but stacked with papers. There were two computers running different programs on opposite tables, both busy processing data.

“I’m here,” Lailah responded from behind a stack of old records piled up on her desk. “Please come in, Mikleo. And you can call me Lailah for now, since this isn’t a class.”

Mikleo stepped inside and sat in a desk chair. “So what kind of work do you want me to do here?”

Lailah looked up again. “Well, I need an assistant for the machinery, and someone to input data, and someone to help me with all these old records that are still on paper--” she stopped abruptly and stood up, grabbing her purse. She pulled a ten out. “But right now I could really use a nice hot coffee, and get yourself something as well, okay?”

Mikleo sighed and took the bill. “There’s going to be a line at this time in the morning, but I’ll be back as fast as I can.” 

So it was coffee after all.

\- -

“That lady professor Mikleo works for is hot,” Rose said. “She’s tall. Legs! _Legs_ , Sorey.” 

Sorey sighed. It had been almost a week since Mikleo started his routine. He’d go to work in the morning and classes after that. Sorey wouldn’t see him all day until after eight. Since the days were getting lonely again, he started having lunch with Rose at the cafe nearby. He looked at his grilled cheese and wished it had Mikleo’s special sauce on it.

“Come on,” Rose said. “You two are gonna have weekends together. Mikleo worked before. Why are you so bummed?”

“I guess it’s different now that we’re doing the boyfriends thing,” Sorey sighed. “I want to see him more than ever before.”

“Hmm, you guys are still in the part of the relationship where you’re finding new things about each other every day, huh?” She laughed. “What an adventure.”

“I guess so.” That was only half of why Sorey was so bummed. “He’s working really hard. I wish I were the one with a job, and then Mikleo could just rest at home when he’s not at school. He does so much, he shouldn’t have to work all the time.”

“Why don’t you?” 

“I’ve been applying, but I guess my schedule is too hard to work around.”

Rose thought for a moment, but didn’t add much in the way of advice. “Keep trying, you’ll find something somewhere.”

\- -

Mikleo was worn ragged by the time he got home on Friday night. After slouching for a few weeks during winter break, he was going to have to let his body get used to this hectic schedule again.

He stopped at the corner store on the way home to grab a few things for dinner. He was sure he’d be back to cooking every night before long, but today he just wanted something microwavable. 

Opening the door to the apartment, he smelled something cooking. “Sorey?” he asked, poking his head into the kitchen. 

“Welcome home, Mikleo!” Sorey was wearing his cupcake apron. He greeted Mikleo with a bright smile and hugged him so tight that Mikleo was nearly lifted off his feet. “I missed you today. I didn’t have class.”

“What are you…” Mikleo finally freed himself from Sorey’s hug and looked around. There was a new white container on the counter. “Are you cooking?”

“I am!” Sorey put his hands on his hips and looked proud of himself. He took the bags from Mikleo’s hands. “Let’s just put this in the freezer for later. It’s already done, I was just waiting for you to come home.”

“Is this a rice cooker?” Mikleo opened the lid of the white pot and steam came out.

“It is, I figured if I bought one, there’s no way I could mess up the rice.”

“And you’re using the slow cooker?” That was the source of the smell.

“Yep, I found a mix of herbs and spices already put together at the store, so all I had to do was cut some meat and veggies and put it in the pot with some water for a few hours.”

Mikleo stared at him wide-eyed. “I’m impressed… nothing is on fire at all.”

Sorey laughed. “It’s probably not up to your standards, but I didn’t have to break out the extinguisher at least.”

He lifted the wooden spoon that was lying by the slow cooker and lifted the lid carefully. The consistency looked good. It covered the spoon well when he brought it to his lips. He blew on it to cool it off first, then tasted.

“Hm,” Mikleo said, tasting the stew. “It just needs a touch of salt, is all. Otherwise, I’m really amazed.” 

“Amazed?” Sorey’s expression got kind of coy and he blushed. “You’re not just saying that because I tried really hard, are you?”

“No, honestly, even if you picked a predetermined blend of flavors, you still got it to the right texture. The vegetables are chopped to a good even size, and there’s just enough moisture.”

“I’m so glad you like it!” He bounced on his heels once in excitement and then hugged Mikleo again. “There will be enough for tomorrow too, so you don’t have to cook. You can just relax!”

Mikleo sighed as he realized what Sorey was doing. He pulled away just enough to turn to face him, and settled into his arms, head resting against his shoulders. “Thank you. This is just what I needed.”

Sorey held him tenderly in return, rubbing his back. “Then let’s eat so you can get some rest, okay?”

“Eating can wait another minute or two,” Mikleo said, squeezing tighter. “I missed you, too.”

“Oh.” Sorey held him back, with that gentle and reassuring hold that he was so good at. 

Mikleo sniffed the air, and detected something aside from the stew. “Sorey, are you sure you didn’t burn anything?”

“The bread!” Sorey shouted, and quickly left Mikleo’s embrace to check the oven. “I was just going to toast it a minute and--” A puff of smoke and a lick of flame spat out of the oven. 

Mikleo didn’t need to look. He shook his head in dismay while Sorey turned the oven off and fanned the air with a towel. “I love you,” he said.

But it was drowned out by the smoke alarm.


	15. Chapter 15

At the end of January, school had been in session for two weeks.  Sorey had seen less of Mikleo thanks to his job.  He even worked on weekends whenever Lailah needed the extra help.  The idea of a day off to spend entirely together was cause for excitement.  It was Saturday, and the weather had granted them a perfect afternoon.  The sky was clear and only the crisp wind reminded them that it was still winter.    


Sorey was comfortable with a light jacket on, and Mikleo was wearing a white zip-up hoodie Lailah had given him, which had the school’s emblem on the back.  Being her assistant didn’t pay much better than his old minimum wage job, but it was experience for his resume, and she often gave him tips and gifts for doing menial tasks.  Sorey loved the way oversized, floppy clothes looked on him, exaggerating his slender features.    


He inhaled a deep breath of fresh air as they walked to the corner store together.  Mikleo had been doing some cool stuff in Lailah’s lab, and Sorey was excited to hear him talk about it.  The forensic studies that Mikleo pursued were a little different than his purely historical pursuits, so unfortunately they didn’t have any classes together this semester.  But at least there was never any lack of topics to discuss together.    


“Maybe you could be a crime scene investigator like on TV,” Sorey said.

Mikleo groaned.  “You know it’s not like that in real life.”

Sorey smiled and took Mikleo’s hand.    


They came home overburdened with paper bags full of all the stuff that Mikleo wanted to try making dinners with.  He was going to freeze some meals for them to take to work or to school, or to eat on lazy nights.       


Sorey stopped to look in the window of a pet shop on the way back.  They were doing a special on puppy adoptions.  He looked to Mikleo to see if this idea might interest him too, but Mikleo was standing far and clear away.

“Look at this one, Mikleo,” he said, pointing to a beagle puppy that seemed to want to lick him through the glass.  “Isn’t he cute?”

“Yeah,” Mikleo answered in a short tone, without looking, taking another step away.

“What’s wrong?  Don’t like animals?”

“Dogs and I don’t really get along.”

Sorey pouted, because it had always been his dream to have a pet dog.  But even just these cute little puppies seemed to make Mikleo uncomfortable.  He dropped the subject and moved along.    


They got in that evening just before the sun went down and headed to the kitchen to unpack their goods.  The kitchen was small, and for Sorey that meant it was easy for them to clean, but when it was both of them trying to put up groceries at the same time, things got a little snug.

He bumped Mikleo hip to hip accidentally.  Of course Mikleo wouldn’t take it as just an accident and bumped him back.    


“Hey, hey,” Sorey laughed.  “Watch where you’re bumping your butt.”  He jabbed Mikleo in the tummy with his finger.  Mikleo jumped and almost dropped the giant bag of rice he was holding.    


“Sorey, you--!” He huffed and as soon as the rice was set in its proper place, he came back with an open-handed attack.

“Ah!”  Sorey tried to catch Mikleo’s hands before his oh-so-slender fingers could tickle his belly, but only managed to stop one of them.  He did have the upper hand in that he was the taller and heavier guy though, and used his grip to pull him away.

Mikleo was already whining about how unfair this was before Sorey had him pinned to the fridge.  “So _ rey _ !”    


“Nya ha ha,” Sorey cackled, enjoying the look of pure frustration on Mikleo’s face.  “I will return your offenses tenfold like the ancient roman armies.”

“Do your worst, you nerd.”

Sorey felt bold in this position, so he snuck his hand under the edge of Mikleo’s shirt to tickle against his bare skin.  Mikleo squirmed and squealed,definitely ticklish in that precise spot.  He was about to press his advantage, but--

Mikleo stood up on the tip of his toes and kissed him.  Sorey’s were chapped from the winter cold of the last few weeks, but Mikleo’s were soft as ever.  He closed his eyes and inhaled to enjoy the lavender scent lingering on him.  It was in that moment that he realized how much he had been needing this, to be close to Mikleo.    


He felt a pair of clever hands sneak up to his waist, and then Mikleo was tickling him again.

“A foul diversion!” Sorey tried to back up, but Mikleo had hooked a leg around the back of his at some point during the shenannigans.  He started to fall backwards, at the same time pulling Mikleo’s feet out from under him.

There was laughing, shouting, and tumbling. Sorey tried to catch Mikleo and hold himself up by the counter at once, and ended up failing at both things.  Mikleo hit his butt first and then fell back on the floor.  Sorey stopped himself from crushing him, landing with his knees and palms straddled out over his slender form.

Mikleo looked up at him, his big violet eyes wide in the confusion of the moment.  Sorey was facing down, their lips only inches away.  Both of them were silent a moment, processing the situation.

“Hi,” Mikleo said, stunned.

“Hi yourself,” Sorey said back.  “You okay?”     


“Yeah.”  It looked like his head had hit the cushy kitchen floor mat, no injury.

Sorey felt a touch.  Mikleo’s hand smoothed against his cheek. 

He smiled.  Mikleo needed him, too.  The long, stressful week had kept them apart to long.    


Mikleo craned his head up to kiss Sorey again.  Sorey hummed a laugh into his lips and pushed him back down into a comfortable position, cupping his and behind his head against the mat.

“You’re kissing me a lot more lately,” Sorey said, pulling away for a moment.  He continued with kissing Mikleo’s cheeks and his forehead.

“Psh, you’re imagining it.”

“No, I don’t think so.”  Another kiss, this time to Mikleo’s ear, and he let out a tense breath.

“Should we maybe…”

Sorey laughed.  “Get off the floor?”

“Maybe not.” Mikleo shook his head and started to blush at the thought of his own suggestion.  “We don’t  _ have _ to.”

“Could be fun if we didn’t.”

“Could be.”

Mikleo’s shirt had ridden up his stomach revealing just a peek of milky white skin.  Sorey thought back to a moment ago.  He slid his hand just under his shirt, and took the time to really feel how soft Mikleo was there.    


Mikleo didn’t squirm this time, but instead shifted the position of his knees so that their legs tangled up.  Sorey could distinctly feel Mikleo’s thigh against his crotch, but didn’t complain.  He liked it when their bodies fit together just right, like this

Sorey continued kissing Mikleo down to his neck.  There, he paid special attention to how tender his skin was.  Just a little bit of pressure from his lips, and there was a pink mark left there.  It faded away quickly, and he wondered how much it would take to make it last a while.  But maybe a little lower where it could be hidden by a shirt, otherwise Mikleo would get angry with him.

He tugged at the neck of Mikleo’s loose t-shirt, exposing his collarbone, and began kissing him there.  He sucked and nipped it with his teeth, listening for any sign of discomfort.  Mikleo rewarded him with pleasured whimper and a pale white hand in his hair clutching at him.      


“Careful,” Sorey said, laughing softly.  “Don’t pull too hard.”

“Ah, I’m sorry.”  Mikleo loosened the fingers.  His voice was breathless.  Sorey hadn’t seen him so undone since that time after his trip.    


Sorey reveled in how affected Mikleo was by his touch, his eyes glassy and his chest rising and falling against his own with shallow breaths.   He didn’t know where this was going, or when they should stop.  For now he only wanted to be in this moment a little longer, with his beautiful Mikleo in his arms.

He began to move the fingers under Mikleo’s shirt in circles over his belly, feeling the smooth texture and warmth of his skin.  He lowered his head to work again at the mark on his neck, nibbling at it.    


Mikleo suppressed the sound he was making, whimpering behind his lips pressed tightly closed.  The legs wrapped around him writhed and tightened.  The hand in his hair curled and clenched.  It hurt less than he thought it would--or rather, he kind of liked the way it felt.

Mikleo was trembling beneath him, and then suddenly went still.  Something had changed in that half a second.      


"Sorey, I need to stop, I--"  Mikleo withdrew his fingers from Sorey’s hair and covered his face with his hands.    


Sorey lifted himself immediately, removing his legs from between Mikleo’s.  “Are you okay?”  He sat beside him and tried to comfort him by stroking his hair.  Mikleo pulled away from the touch.  This alarmed Sorey the most.  “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, of course not!”  Mikleo pulled his hands away from his face, but wouldn’t look Sorey in the eye.  “I just…”  He sprang up from the floor.  “I just need to use the bathroom, that’s all!” 

Before Sorey could question anything about that excuse, or the sudden change in attitude, Mikleo had skittered away and into the hall bathroom and slammed the door behind him.

It was all wrong.  Sorey stood up and looked around himself at the now silent kitchen where only moments ago there had been laughing and giggling.    His body moved to finish putting away the groceries almost without him.  His mind was entirely busy trying to figure out what he’d done wrong.  Had he pushed Mikleo too far?  But Mikleo was clearly enjoying himself, and had even urged him on with the way he responded.  Was Sorey misreading that?  He couldn’t stand the thought of Mikleo being afraid of him.

He had to wait for Mikleo to calm down and then do his very best to apologize for whatever he’d done, and make him feel comfortable again.  He couldn’t lose Mikleo because he was being horny and impatient, even if keeping his hands off was agonizing at times.    


“Sorey?”

Sorey jumped to attention at the sound of his name, and was at the bathroom door in seconds.  “What is it, Mikleo?” he asked, trying very hard not to sound as shaken up as he felt inside.    


Mikleo kept himself hidden behind the crack in the door.  “Could you…”

“Whatever it is, it’s okay.  I’ll do anything you want.”

“My top drawer,” he said, almost whispering.  Sorey had never heard his voice so heavy with shame.  It wasn’t like when he was just bashful, it wasn’t cute at all.  It made Sorey’s heart hurt.  “Could you get me a pair of underwear…”    


“Uh…”  It took Sorey a second or two to process the request.  Suddenly it dawned on him what had happened, and why Mikleo was so ashamed.  “Of course I will, I’ll be right back.”

Sorey stepped across the hall into Mikleo’s room.  He pulled open Mikleo’s drawer and was hit with the fresh scent of the fabric softener Mikleo preferred.  It would only make the situation even weirder if he stopped to examine and sniff Mikleo’s underwear no matter how nice they smelled, so he grabbed a pair without looking, and shut the drawer.

He returned to the bathroom and knocked on the door to let Mikleo know he was there.  “Here, I brought them,” he said, holding the underwear out to the crack in the door.  He averted his eyes in case Mikleo was feeling self conscious.    


A pale hand grabbed the item.  “Thank you,” Mikleo said, and the door shut.

Sorey waited there for Mikleo to come out.  Eventually he did, holding himself and looking away, his face drained of color.

“It’s okay,” Sorey said.  “It’s natural, you know.”

“I-I know, but…”  Mikleo took a step back towards the kitchen and stopped.  “I didn’t want it to happen like that.”

“For what to happen?” Sorey repeated, not sure exactly what he was referring to.  “I mean I know what happened but--”

“My first time,” Mikleo said, hushed.  “With you.”

“Hey, hey,” Sorey said, trying to laugh it off.  “It doesn’t count!  You couldn’t help it.  Sometimes the body just goes off and does what it wants to do without your say in things.”  He scratched his head as he trailed off.  That was certainly true of him at least, and certain dreams he had.

Mikleo turned his back to Sorey.  “It was a strange feeling, too.”

It was awkward, them standing in the hallway talking about this.  Sorey wanted to put his arms around Mikleo and hug this out.  But that’s not necessarily what Mikleo would want him to do.  If turning away made it easier to address it, that was fine.  Sorey wanted to know what Mikleo was feeling more than anything.  “Can you talk to me about it?” he asked.  “You don’t have to, but I’d be happy to listen.”

“It’s just…”  Mikleo was still stammering through his sentences and looking at the ground, rubbing his arms and standing with a weird posture.  “So unspectacular.  Like, I barely felt it.”

Sorey frowned at that.  He’d hoped if Mikleo had to go through all this that at least it would have felt good for him.    


“And it was so fast,” Mikleo said, a little louder now.  He seemed frustrated, like this was something he needed to get out.  He turned around to face Sorey, even if he still wouldn’t look up.  “Usually I have to think about it really hard and for a long time.”

“I’ve never really had to think that hard,” Sorey said, still rubbing his head idly.  Then a thought crossed his mind and he couldn’t stop his mouth from verbalizing it before his brain thought better of it.  “Do you think about me?”

“I, well…”  Mikleo started to blush again, which was better than looking sickly pale from shame.  “Is that weird?  I’m sorry if it’s weird.”

“It’s not weird!”  Sorey shook his head energetically and spurted out words.  “I mean, I think about you, too!”

Mikleo looked up at him.  Sorey was glad he wasn’t hiding his eyes anymore, but those pink cheeks and gorgeous eyes looking at him in that asking way made him even more flustered than the subject of discussion.  “You do?”

“Well, of course I...”  Now it was time for Sorey to avert his eyes and blush.  “You’re my boyfriend and I think you’re really…”

“What kind of things do you think about me doing?”

“W-well uh…”  Sorey coughed and cleared his throat.  “I mean, I could tell you but uh, we’re going to run into a little problem if I start describing it in detail.”

“Oh.”  Mikleo sighed.  “Sorry, I didn’t consider it might have that uh, undesirable effect.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s  _ undesirable _ ,” Sorey said.  If they were lying in bed together naked and staring into each other’s eyes, Sorey would love to whisper all his fantasies to Mikleo.  That thought in itself got him even more riled.  He swallowed hard and tried to calm down.

“At least...” Mikleo brushed a bit of hair out of his face.  He was so beautiful, Sorey almost couldn’t stand it.  “At least we’ve been through possibly the most awkward thing that could happen, and everything is okay.”

“Yeah!” Sorey heard his voice crack and cleared his throat again.  “I mean, the bright side of it is at least maybe we won’t be afraid when we decide to, you know…”

Mikleo looked him directly in the eyes again.  “I’m not afraid.”    


“You’re not anymore?”

Mikleo shook his head.  “I wouldn’t say that I was afraid before either, I mean, not in that sense. You always make me feel safe, Sorey.”

Sorey smiled big at that, and closed the space between him and Mikleo.  “That makes me happy.”  He hugged Mikleo and held him tenderly against his chest.  “And thanks.”

“Psh,” Mikleo snorted.  “I wasn’t trying to compliment you or anything.”

Sorey cupped Mikleo’s head and brushed his hair with his fingers.  “I know, but I like it when you tell me how I make you feel, and I know it’s hard for you to say things like that.  So, thank you.”

“I love you,” Mikleo said into Sorey’s shirt.  “I was just afraid that I’d mess it up.”

Sorey laughed genuinely this time.  “How could you mess something like that up?”  He kissed the top of Mikleo’s head.  “I love you, too.  If this teaches us anything, it’s that we can handle whatever might happen.  So, any time you are ready, I’m ready.”

Mikleo pulled away a few inches and looked up at Sorey’s face.  “Really?”

“Yeah, really.”

Mikleo smiled and his expression was delightfully coy and innocent.  “Then could we,” he started to say, bringing a hand to his mouth to tap his lips.  “Could we continue on like before?”

“I like that idea.”    


“We don’t have to do anything extreme, just...” Mikleo paused.  He was blushing so deeply.  “We don’t have to worry about where it might go.”

“Yeah.”  Sorey removed his arms from around Mikleo, and took his hand instead.  “Maybe not so much on the floor this time, though.”

Mikleo pouted.  “That was your fault.”

“My fault?  You seemed like you liked it.”

“Hmm…”  Mikleo ignored the accusation.  “Should we go to the couch?”

It felt strange, putting this much thought into it.  For all the location mattered to Sorey, he could hold Mikleo against the wall right here in the hallway.  But that could get messy, too.  “We could do that, or…”  He shrugged.  “If we’re not worried about it, then... the bed?” 

“Your bed…”  Mikleo said the words, mulling in over in his head.  “Let’s do that.”

Sorey was a little surprised by his enthusiasm.  He grinned and squeezed Mikleo’s hand.    


 

* * *

 

Mikleo tried to hide any sign that he was shaking as a shudder came over him.  He had dreamed about this for a while now, but he’d hate to admit it.  It sounded so childish and silly.  Every time Sorey touched him he wondered what it would feel like without cloth in the way, and every time he went to sleep he wanted to be in Sorey’s bed.

Sorey pulled him by the hand, something Mikleo begrudgingly allowed, and reached to open the door.  His hand fumbled on the knob.    


“Nice job,” Mikleo snarked, but he smiled because it meant that Sorey was excited too.

Once the door was successfully open, Sorey pulled him in and held his arm around his waist.  “I’m going to have to shut you up somehow if you keep sassing me,” he said, laughing and nuzzling his nose against the side of Mikleo’s head.    


Mikleo humored him.  “Hm, I wonder how you could do that.”

They were in Sorey’s room, dimly lit by a lamp on the bedside table.  His bed wasn’t made, since he hadn’t been expecting anyone to come in.  There were a few books and papers on the corner of the bed, which Sorey moved in the most unceremonious way possible, tossing them on the floor out of the way.

It felt like forbidden territory, a place he’d only entered on that one occasion when Sorey was ill.  But for Sorey, it was a comfortable space.  He sat on the edge of the bed, still holding Mikleo’s hand.  He didn’t tug him or pull him in, but just sat there smiling and waiting, rubbing his fingers gently.

Mikleo closed the space, standing at the edge of the bed between Sorey’s knees.  He liked the superficial height he held over him when Sorey was seated.  Sorey placed his hands on Mikleo’s hips and smoothed them upward, sliding them underneath the fabric of his shirt. 

“You’re so soft, Mikleo.”

Instead of getting lost in Sorey’s touch like before, he kept his head clear.  He didn’t want Sorey to have all the fun.  He ran his fingers across Sorey’s jaw.  “And you’re a little rough, but that’s okay.”

Sorey pretended to be terribly offended.  “You!”  He smirked and lifted Mikleo by his waist, which caused Mikleo to yelp.  He leaned back, dragging Mikleo into the bed.

Before he could resist, Mikleo was lying on his back in the bed, and Sorey was straddled over him, in the same position as they were before.    


“This is about where we were,” Sorey said, leaning in so that his soft-spoken words tickled Mikleo’s ear.  “So… what was I doing that made you lose it like that?”

Mikleo barely hear him, as something occurred to him.  He sat up straight, panicked.  “Did we put the groceries away?”

Sorey laughed.  “I put up the cold stuff, it doesn’t hurt the rest to sit on the counter.”

“Oh.” 

“Relax, all right?  You worry about everything.”

Mikleo took a deep breath.  He had to get these errant thoughts out of his head.  All he wanted to focus on right now was Sorey.  “Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize.”  Sorey lowered his head and kissed Mikleo softly on the lips.  “It’s cute, I’m trying to be all sexy here and you’re thinking about groceries.”

It was embarrassing enough without Sorey calling attention to it.    


“So?”  Sorey smirked in such a frustrating, self-satisfied way, easing Mikleo back into the bed.  “What was it that made you… you know.”

This was really just so embarrassing, and he wished Sorey would just do the thing instead of asking him about it.  “You can do whatever you want, okay?”

“I’m trying to figure out what  _ you _ want.”

Mikleo grumbled.  Sorey laughed.

“If you like something, you have to tell me.”   Sorey smiled and brushed Mikleo’s bangs aside to kiss his forehead.  “I can’t read your mind, you know.”

“I know.”  He swallowed hard.  “It was your teeth against my skin.  Okay?”

Sorey’s expression didn’t change, but his eyes seemed to get darker somehow, like the words that Mikleo had spoken fueled his passions even more.  He lowered himself to Mikleo’s ear.  “I was just trying to give you a hickey, you know.”

Mikleo felt his cheeks burning.  “Fine.  I don’t mind anything you want to do with me.”

“That’s a little dangerous to say.”

Being made fun of like this didn’t make him all that amorous.  “I came and laid down in your bed, didn’t I?  Do I really have to tell you what I want?”

That might have been a little too much verbalization.  Sorey was taken aback.  He leaned away, twirling a bit of his hair between his fingers nervously. “T-true…”    


Mikleo sat up under him, so as to hold him in his lap, almost, if only he were bigger.  “You can mark me any way you like.  I don’t care who sees it.”

“You know,” Sorey said, with a teasing smirk.  “It would be easier to do that if you weren’t wearing a shirt.”

“Only if I can have yours.”

“Deal.”

Sorey whipped his t-shirt off as quickly as the agreement was reached, and handed it to Mikleo.  Mikleo held it, stunned.  “Okay, now you.”

“Sorey!” Mikleo squeaked as Sorey pulled his shirt up until his arms were tangled up in it.  Mikleo had been wearing a long tee under his hoodie that day, and he had to cooperate before Sorey could get the sleeves off of him.

At that moment it occurred to Mikleo that he had never seen Sorey completely shirtless before.  Just peeks of him on lazy nights when he wore an old floppy t-shirt with holes in it.    


“You were hiding all of that,” Mikleo said, clearing his throat.  His eyes were glued to Sorey’s abdomen.  He wasn’t ripped or anything, but there were unmistakable shapes there, and Mikleo liked them.

“Not for that long,” Sorey laughed, embarassed.  “I might have just started working out again, while you were off at work.  Maybe.”    


“Still, in only two weeks time?”

Sorey got up on his knees and leaned into Mikleo again, arms on either side of him,  and hummed against his ear.  “Mm, I just worked off a little extra winter fluff.”

Mikleo smiled as Sorey not-so-subtly moved his legs to hold him in his lap.  It made him a little taller.  “I envy how effortless it is to maintain your musculature.”

“Hm, but why? You’re perfect the way you are.”  Once Sorey had him in a comfortable position, he nuzzled against him.  Being seated in his lap put Sorey just at neck level.

It tickled.  Mikleo stifled a giggle. “I think you’re just easy to please.”

“ _ I think _ you’re just easy to fall in love with.”    


The giggle came out despite his efforts.  “How can you say lines like that with a straight face?”

Sorey began to kiss and nip again at Mikleo’s neck, unafraid of what evidence he might leave there.  He paused briefly.  “Special skill,” he said, and went back to it.

Mikleo whimpered as Sorey’s lips worked over the spot between his collarbone and his neck that was particularly sensitive.  He had to admit though, it was probably the spontaneity of being pressed against the floor earlier that caused the little accident.  This was not as intense, but much nicer in its own way.  Mikleo could relax and enjoy the tingle of Sorey’s touch as he slowly worked marks into his skin.

“There’s one,” Sorey said, admiring his work.  “And two, and three.”

Mikleo smiled.  “Are your pants too tight?”

“Huh?”  Sorey looked down at himself and laughed, seeing how strained the crotch of his jeans were against Mikleo’s thighs.  “Ah, well I’ll tolerate it if you want me to keep them on.”

Mikleo shook his head.  “I want you to be comfortable,” he said.  “And I know you’ve got boxers on.  Besides, iIt’s not like I’ve never seen you in your shorts.”

“Okay, but you’re going to have to get off me first.”

Mikleo slipped out of Sorey’s lap.  He watched him remove his shoes and his socks, then slip his jeans off.  The shorts he wore under his pants were different from the ones he slept in sometimes.  They were thinner.  Mikleo blushed at how little they covered his erection.  Sorey jumped back into the bed.  “Now yours.”

“Who said anything about mine?”

Sorey pouted.  “Come on, I can’t kiss you all over if you keep half your clothes on.”

“Uhg.”  Mikleo frowned.  “All right.  You always know how to get your way.”

“That’s because you always know how to make me happy.”

“Okay, but I can’t take your cheesiness.”  Mikleo began to unbutton his pants and pull them down.

“I’ll help,” Sorey said, and tugged on them much harder.  “Lift your feet up!”

“Sorey, I can do it myself, if you just--”

He was interrupted by Sorey’s snickering laughter.  “Mikleo--”

“What?” Mikleo spat.  “Certainly I don’t look  _ that _ funny.”

“N-no, it’s your underwear.”  Sorey busted out into giggles.  “They’re too adorable!”

“Eh?” Mikleo looked down to find himself wearing a pair of shorts with a pattern of different cartoon ice cream shapes with cute faces on them.  “Damn it, I didn’t look when you brought them…”

“I love the little popsicle making a cat face,” Sorey said, hugging Mikleo around the waist as he examined them more closely.  He kissed Mikleo’s belly again.  The back of his neck ticked at the contact.  “What if I give each ice cream a little kiss?”

“You planned it, didn’t you?”

“I most certainly did not.”  Sorey mocked a frown at the accusation.  “In fact, you were so embarrassed, I didn’t look at your underwear at all.  The question is, why would you have such interesting underwear if you didn’t like it, hmm?”

Mikleo pouted and folded his arms.  “My mother sent them to me, and I didn’t have the heart to throw them out.”

“Don’t blame it on your mom, you’re a master of your own fate.” 

“You…” 

Sorey began kissing him between the slight protrusion of his hip bones and just under his belly button.  Mikleo gasped and covered his mouth as the soft, wet touch of Sorey’s mouth tingled throughout his body.  His legs twitched. 

“You know,” Sorey said with a mischievous grin.  He pulled at the elastic band of Mikleo’s shorts and let it go, stinging him lightly with a slap against the skin.  “If you hate these underwear so much, we could just take them off you.”

Mikleo blanked out for a moment and then scurried from under Sorey’s grasp, holding his hands down over his shorts.  “I-I don’t…”  He stammered and trailed off, not even sure what his own objection was.

Sorey sighed.  His expression wasn’t quite frown, but he was definitely disappointed.  “Sorry,” he said.  “After what you said earlier, I thought…”

“It’s okay.” They were both sitting up on the bed now.  Mikleo got closer and spoke softly.  “I’ll touch you.  I want to do that.  I just--”

Sorey shook his head.  “I want this to be something we do together.”

Mikleo huffed an exasperated breath.  “I’m sorry, I don’t know why it’s so hard for me.”

“It isn’t difficult to understand,” Sorey said.  He smiled warmly for Mikleo and rubbed his shoulder.  “If you don’t feel like you can be that vulnerable with me yet, then we can take small steps.”

“No, it’s not that.  I really want this.”

“But…”

“I’m not vulnerable because I don’t trust you, I--” he choked on the words, trying to choose the right ones.  “I’m afraid I won’t be...”

Mikleo could taste regret in his mouth as soon as the words left it.   No matter how well he tried to say it, he’d hurt Sorey’s feelings, somehow.  The end of the sentence didn’t matter.  Sorey looked down at his knees, all the brightness taken out of him.    


“Did I make you feel like you aren’t good enough?” 

“No, no, I’m just…”  Mikleo cursed under his breath.  “That’s just how I am and it’s not easy to get around it.”

“I don’t know how to tell you any better than I already have.  You’re amazing. I think you’re so attractive, and that’s not going to change.  Don’t you believe me?”

“I do, I just…”  He took a deep breath.  “I guess that’s just how I see myself.”

“Oh…”  Sorey still seemed disappointed, but he was at least willing to accept that this wasn’t about him.  “Then it’s my job as your boyfriend to keep fawning over you until you understand how beautiful you really are, inside and out.  And we don’t do anything until you do.” 

“Nevermind.”  Mikleo hefted a big sigh.  “It’s a stupid thing to worry about.  I told you before I’m ready, and I am.”

“But you’re worried about how I’ll see you, and I don’t like that at all.”

“I’m not!” Mikleo huffed and stood up in front of Sorey, wearing nothing but his ice cream cartoon underwear.    


“But…” Sorey was justifiably confused.  “You just said you were.”

“I just had to think about it for a minute,” Mikleo huffed.  He got out out of the bed and stood up. “I’m perfectly comfortable with the idea of you seeing me naked, and I’ll prove it to you right now.”  He reached down and yanked his boxers down his hips, letting them fall to the ground, then kicked them off his legs.  “There.”

It took the strength of every atom composing his body not to turn around or hide himself with his arms.  He couldn’t hide, and he knew that he shouldn’t want to.  Sorey never made him feel ashamed, it was all him.    


Sorey stared up at him from the edge of the bed, wide-eyed and speechless. “You’re…”  He took a moment to find his voice.  “You’re just… amazing.” 

Mikleo couldn’t help looking down despite his intense effort not to.  He didn’t have anything to respond to that with.

Sorey stood and bent over, pulling his own shorts down. Then he was standing there naked with just a few feet between them.    


Mikleo was almost afraid to look, but couldn’t keep his eyes away.  Sorey had such pleasing shapes to his body, masculine but soft, so subtle that they might go unnoticed in his typical baggy jeans and nerd t-shirts.  Nothing hiding them now.    


And he loved Sorey so much that it was difficult to tell if he had always had a soft spot for his type, or if those distinct proportions had become his ideal simply because they belonged to Sorey.

“Is it okay?” Sorey asked him.  His voice was barely above a whisper.

Mikleo smiled.  “Yeah.”

“Good.”    


They both closed the space, eager to hold each other again.  It always felt like Sorey’s shoulder was just the perfect height for him to prop his head on, nestled against his neck. Sorey’s hands explored his naked skin, until coming to rest at the small of his back.  This was something they did almost every day, but without the barrier of clothing he felt so much closer to him.

Sorey held him for a moment, saying nothing, as they explored this new closeness together.  Content in this, he had almost forgotten the feeling of need until it snuck up on him again.  He lifted his chin from Sorey’s shoulder to kiss him.  Sorey met his lips without needing any prompt.

 

* * *

  
  


Sorey closed his eyes to kiss Mikleo.  Their nakedness was still more than apparent even without seeing, as Mikleo’s soft skin rubbed up against Sorey’s bare erection.  Not to mention his chest, his neck, stomach, thighs--all the places that had never been touched like this before were now plastered with a gratuitous amount of Mikleo.

He took Mikleo’s hands and guided him back into the bed, trying his hardest not to interrupt their kissing.  The result was a messy tumble into the sheets, but he couldn’t complain.

“You’re really beautiful,” he said, looking at Mikleo’s naked body laid out on the bed.  He lifted Mikleo’s hand and kissed the knuckles, never taking his eyes off him.  “I’m so lucky to get to see you this way.”

Mikleo was making a clear effort not to dismiss his affections this time, but there was no way to hide the red that flushed his face.  It was on his chest, too, and on his thighs.    


“It’s so cute when you blush.”

That was a little too far, prompting Mikleo to scrunch his face up.  “Must you tease me right now of all times?”

Sorey traced the patch of color on Mikleo’s chest with his finger.  “Rose pink on fair skin, Mikleo’s cheeks blossom, and my heart is his.”

Mikleo smirked.  “Are you working on haiku now?”

“Don’t you like it?”

“I don’t see it having a very widespread appeal.”

Sorey smiled.  “My poetry is just for you.”

“I’ll take the brunt of it for the sake of the rest of humanity.”

Sorey snickered.  “You know what else is pink?”

“Sorey--”

Sorey lowered his head to kiss one of Mikleo’s nipples.  After kissing it tenderly, he watched as it transformed from a soft, smooth pad into a tight little nub in response to his touch.   Mikleo gasped.  Egged on by that reaction, Sorey opened his mouth to envelop the skin in his mouth. He remembered what Mikleo said about his teeth driving him crazy before, and gnawed at the skin softly, just enough to let him feel it and not hard enough to hurt him. 

Mikleo whimpered and threw an arm over his face to cover his mouth.  Sorey hummed a laugh against his skin.  He wanted to make Mikleo feel so good that he wouldn’t be able to suppress his outbursts at all.    


He continued to kiss Mikleo’s chest all over, giving the other nipple a turn and coming back again.  While he was at it, he smoothed his hand out over Mikleo’s tummy, down to his hips little by little.  He didn’t want to shock him.

Mikleo didn’t protest.  Sorey moved his hand lower until his fingers felt hair, so lightly colored and fine that he hadn’t noticed it when he was looking at him earlier.  He rubbed his fingers in the soft peach fuzz.  He wanted to feel it against his face, and leaned his head down.

“I-I,” Mikleo began to stammer.  “You might not want to--”

Sorey hadn’t been about to use his mouth just yet, but he definitely wanted to.  “What’s wrong with it?”

“I haven’t showered since this morning, and we went out walking, and--” 

“Oh,” Sorey hummed, almost laughing.  He lowered his head to kiss the hair. It wasn’t shower fresh with soap, but that was no surprise.  “You don’t smell bad.”  Rubbing his nose in it he could detect a hint of musk, but it was strangely earthy-sweet.  He inhaled against Mikleo’s skin.  “I kind of like it.”

Sorey pulled away and looked at Mikleo’s erect penis closely for the first time.  It was smaller than his own by just a little, but with Mikleo’s slender frame, it suited him in proportion.  The head was dark pink and shiny like a strawberry candy.   Sorey leaned down again to kiss it, and wasn’t surprised to find out that it didn’t taste that way.  It was salty, and the bead of liquid seeping out was sticky and bitter on his lips.

Mikleo sucked in a breath that filled his chest.   Sorey continued licking the head despite the bitter taste, eager to draw more noises out of him.  He wanted Mikleo to come again.  This time it  _ would _ be spectacular.  He wanted to give him the kind of orgasm that left stars in his eyes and made his legs weak.

He opened his mouth and took the head in.  The taste didn’t bother him, and it wasn’t too big for his mouth.  The perfect size, he thought, as he pushed down, sliding more of the shaft into his mouth.

Mikleo whimpered something behind his hand and his thigh twitched next to Sorey’s head.  He wrapped his arms around Mikleo’s legs to steady him without taking his mouth away.

Mikleo’s cock hit the back of his mouth before he could get to the base.  It wasn’t how he’d imagined this going, but he was afraid of pushing any harder and choking himself.  Maybe he needed some practice.  Mikleo didn’t seem to mind the limitation and moaned through lips pressed tightly shut as Sorey slid off and then back down again.

“Sorey, please--”    


Sorey looked up with the dick still in his mouth to find Mikleo looking worried again.  He let go and rest his head on his thigh, rubbing his belly to reassure him.  “Please, what?  I’ll do anything you ask.”

“Can we do something that you’ll like, too?”

“But I like giving you a blowjob.”

Mikleo frowned.  “I want to make you feel good too,” he said.  “You know, together.”

Sorey was a little disappointed he wouldn’t get to finish, but he laid down on his side next to Mikleo in the bed and kissed him.  “What do you want to do?” he asked.    


Mikleo rolled over to face him.  There was a curious look in his eyes as his gaze trailed down Sorey’s body and back up again.  “Can I?” he whispered, and brushed his fingers gently down Sorey’s penis.        


Sorey sighed, trying to release the frustration that had been building up in his body.  His cock had been hard for a while, and listening to Mikleo’s cute little sounds as he kissed him all over hadn’t helped at all.  “Yes,” he said, sounding more ragged and desperate than he meant to.  “Please touch me.”

Mikleo cupped his hand.  His fingers and palm felt softer than ever, and they were warm.  Sorey watched Mikleo as he lifted his own erection and positioned his body so that they both fit into his hands, rubbing against each other.  Sorey’s neglected cock twitched in response to the sudden stimulation.

“I can feel your heart beating,” Mikleo said.  His eyes were dark and half-lidded.  His lips were deep pink.    


Sorey had to to kiss him, had to grind his hips against him. “I love you,” he said against his mouth, sloppy and desperate.  He bucked against Mikleo’s stomach, and heard Mikleo’s little gasp in return as their cocks slid and bumped against each other between the warm flesh of their bodies.  He slid his own hand next to Mikleo’s to help hold them together, so that they could find a perfect rhythm, both equal in this.

“Sorey,” Mikleo whimpered.  Sorey opened his eyes, afraid that something was wrong again.  Mikleo looked back at him.  He was smiling.  “Sorey, I love you.”

The sound of his name was nice in his ears.  “I love you too, Mikleo.”    


Mikleo shivered in his arms and arched his back into him.  They didn’t need their hands anymore.  Their bodies were skin to skin, just enough friction between their legs to build to something.  Sorey wanted so much more, but the sight of Mikleo contorting in pleasure against him was enough to send tremors through his body.

He wrapped his arms around Mikleo, digging his hands into his hair and the small of his back, holding him tight.    


Mikleo opened his mouth, silently at first.  The sound he finally made against Sorey’s ear was an angelic sob as his body wracked.  Sorey held him tight and steady.  He felt a drip of wetness against his leg.  Mikleo writhed for a moment in his arms as the orgasm ran through him.  It was perfection, Sorey wanted to stay in that moment forever.

When Mikleo was lucid again, he began kissing Sorey and running his hands over every part of him he could touch.  He was pliable and eager as Sorey pushed him onto his back, wrapping his legs around Sorey’s waist before he could even be set down.    


Sorey liked this amorous post-orgasm Mikleo much more than the ashamed, post-accidental one.   He ground his hips against Mikleo and let his cock slip in between his thighs.  “You’re so soft,” he groaned, trying to make the moment last.  But with Mikleo being so tender and his skin being so warm and smooth, it wouldn’t.

Everything that had been building up released as he came, leaving a stripe across Mikleo’s stomach.  The emotional weight of being with another person, the person he loved, made it different than any time he’d touched himself.  Mikleo’s eyes looking up into his made it so much more than he had ever thought.  He remained still in that position trying to hold onto it as long as he could.

When the last shimmer of orgasm left him, he crashed into the bed, panting.  Once he’d caught his breath, he turned over to give Mikleo the biggest kiss on the cheek.  “That was amazing,” he said.  “I mean, uh, for me it was, at least.”

“I liked it,” Mikleo said, nuzzling into his neck.      


Sorey kissed his nose and sat up for a moment to find the wet napkins he kept in his side drawer.  “I got you a little messy.”

Mikleo laughed softly at him as he wiped up the stickiness from his belly.  He was looking at him with such a soft, adoring look.  It was something he’d never quite seen on Mikleo, at least not as open as it was then.

He cleaned himself up and then laid back in the bed.  “You know I like it when you let me take care of you.”

“Hm, I do.”

Sorey smiled and played with the strands of Mikleo’s hair that always fell into his face.  “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so relaxed.”

“I don’t know if I’ve ever been this relaxed.”

Sorey opened his mouth to say some other teasing remark, but he was cut off by the sound of Mikleo’s stomach grumbling.  He laughed.  “We never did eat, did we?”

Mikleo went back to his usual self, blushing slightly and turning his nose up.  “I was going to cook, but I guess I’ll have to do it tomorrow.”

“So what are we going to eat?”

Mikleo flopped over on him.  “Order us pizza.”

“I thought you said no more delivery food.”

Mikleo made a disapproving groan.

“Ha ha, okay.”  Sorey picked up his phone to call.  “You’re cute when you get all whiney, you know.”

He ordered the pizza and got right back into his spot cuddling Mikleo.  “This means at least one of us is going to have to put on pants eventually.”

“Not for thirty to forty-five minutes, at least.”

“That might not be enough time for me.”

Mikleo looked down and began to look unsure of himself again.  “Sorey, uh…”  Sorey waited and let him sort out what he wanted to say.  “Is it okay if I sleep in your bed with you tonight?”

“Of course.”  He brushed Mikleo’s bangs aside and kissed his forehead.  “It wouldn’t feel right if you didn’t.”

When Mikleo looked at him again, he was smiling, looking as happy as he ever had.  Sorey felt contentedness wash over him.

“I was thinking about this just a little while ago,” he said.

Mikleo’s smile pulled into a little smirk.  “Oh, yeah?”

“One of the things I think about when I’m alone is being in bed with you like this.  Naked, all warm and relaxed.  And to fall asleep next to you, just like this.”

“I’d say you’re pretty innocent, then.”

“I’ve got weirder ones.”

Mikleo laughed again.  Sorey squeezed him tight.

“I was thinking about laying here, talking to you about my dreams.  It was just a fantasy, and now it’s happening.  But that was just an hour ago.  It’s funny.”

“Well,” Mikleo said.  “You’ve got until pizza gets here to tell me all about them.”

Sorey snickered and rubbed his fingers in Mikleo’s hair, getting it even messier.  “That maid costume from Halloween has come up a few times, for starters.”

Mikleo lifted one of his pillows and smacked him with it.

 

  
  


  
  
  
  
  
  
  


  
  
  
  
  
  



	16. Chapter 16

The blare of the alarm from his phone woke Mikleo out of a good sleep. He looked around and found himself in Sorey’s room, still warmly wrapped snugly in Sorey's arms. 

But that alarm was piercing his brain.

He reached for the phone he'd set on Sorey's nightstand and hit snooze. It wasn't something he liked to do, but this morning was special.

As he shifted back into bed, Sorey’s grasp around him tightened, intent on keeping him there. “Sorey,” he said, softly. “I've got to get up sometime.” 

“No,” Sorey grumbled and squeezed him tighter.

“No?” Mikleo laughed. He turned over to face Sorey. He wasn't awake yet, drooling on his pillow. “And here I gave myself an extra hour so I could make you pancakes.”

Sorey's eyes opened into puffy slits. “You're better than pancakes.”

“High praise.”

Sorey was done with the debate and nuzzled into Mikleo's cheek, ready to sleep again. Mikleo had scheduled his alarm early just so that he could enjoy this.

“You're cute, you know?”

Sorey’s eyes opened again and he snorted. “No way.”

“Why is it I have to sit back and let you call me beautiful, but you can't be cute?”

“Because you are.” He was obviously too asleep still to argue.

Sorey smiled at him, eyes still dark with sleep. Mikleo ran his fingers through his tussled hair. It was their first morning in the same bed. He wanted to remember this always, the morning light in Sorey’s eyes, his smell, his goofy half-conscious grin.

The alarm went off again. Mikleo hit snooze again and threw it. 

“It's six AM,” Sorey groaned. “And it's Sunday.”

“If I'd have known about this, I wouldn't have agreed to work early on a Sunday, but I can't back out of it now.”

That got a groggy laugh out of Sorey. “I guess it wasn’t on the schedule.” He pulled Mikleo back to him and kissed the side of his head through his hair. “Come on, let’s sleep just a few more minutes.”

Mikleo wished that he could. “I really need to get in the shower,” he said. Then an idea came to him. “You want to join me?”

All of the sudden, Sorey was awake. Funny how that worked. “I could be persuaded.”

Mikleo pulled himself out of bed and yawned as he bent over to retrieve his discarded phone. He was wearing his ice cream underwear to sleep in, since it had barely stayed on him before. He turned to find Sorey lounging in the bed, staring at him conspicuously with a big grin on his face.

“You have to get out of bed first,” Mikleo said. 

“You’re distracting me.”

Mikleo huffed at that. “I’ll go without you.”

“Okay, I’m up!” 

Sorey had only slept in his underwear too. Even though Mikleo had seen all that and more the previous night, it still flustered him when Sorey yawned and stretched his arms over his head. 

“I’ve never showered in the hall bathroom,” he said, following Mikleo. “I get to see what makes you smell so good.”

“That’s exciting, huh?”

“Well…” Sorey really didn’t have to point out that that wasn’t the exciting part.

Mikleo grabbed some towels from the hall closet and set them on the counter in the bathroom. Sorey was already running the water. “Make it as hot as you like,” he said. “I don’t mind.”

Sorey let the water run until it was steaming, then stripped off his underwear and stepped in. Mikleo followed after him, and found Sorey’s larger build made an effective shield against all the water. He frowned. Sorey just laughed and pulled him into the front of the shower, taking the back position. “There, that’s better.”

Sorey’s hair was slicked back and the hot water was darkening the color of his cheeks and his lips. Mikleo leaned his head against his shoulder and took a moment to enjoy the heat of the water and the sound of Sorey’s heart.

“We’re supposed to be washing up,” Sorey teased, rubbing Mikleo’s shoulders gently. “Here, where’s your soap?”

Mikleo turned to the rack hanging from the shower head. He had a handful of different bottles in there, one of them was cream body soap in a clean lavender scent. He handed it to Sorey.

“So this is the magic smell,” he said, urging Mikleo to stay in that position. He squeezed out some of the wash and rubbed it on his back. 

“The really heavy masculine stuff makes me break out,” Mikleo said. He sighed as Sorey’s hands slicked over his muscles. It was the first time in weeks he hadn’t felt tense in his shoulders from stress. 

“That stuff smells too strong anyway,” Sorey said, and kissed the nape of his neck. 

“Is there something else you’d prefer?”

“Hmm,” Sorey lingered on that thought. “I like vanilla, pumpkin spice, chocolate--maybe apple?”

“Food smells,” Mikleo sighed. “I should have guessed.”

Sorey laughed and wrapped his arms around Mikleo to clean the front of him. “I don’t really care what it smells like, but I do like washing you with it.”

It was was not a particularly sexual feeling as Sorey’s hands smoothed over his chest and down his sides, but it was definitely intimate. The nuance was something Mikleo hadn’t expected. 

Sorey interrupted the moment by trying to wash his face. Mikleo balked and accidentally snorted shower water up his nose.

“Ah, why not? I won’t get it in your eyes, I promise!”

“I use this one.” He held out the facial scrub. “That one won’t work for my face, geez.”

“Oh…” Sorey pondered the subject like he’d never hear of using more than one bath product before. “And you have shampoo and conditioner, huh?”

“I don’t even want to know what you’re using in your shower,” Mikleo sighed. He scrubbed and rinsed, then washed his hair as quickly as he could to make time for Sorey’s turn. “Here, switch places, let me wash you properly.”

Sorey happily obliged, and helped Mikleo trade places with him again. “Once a week I use this loofa,” he said, dispensing some of his wash onto a webby sponge.

“That’s what that thing is called?”

“Yeah, now turn around.”

Sorey did, and Mikleo began to scrub his back. “It’s a little rough, but it removes the dead skin.”

Sorey exhaled a deep sigh and his shoulders went slack. “It feels good.”

Mikleo couldn’t help but examine Sorey’s back while he was washing. He had a few blemishes, probably from his spotty hygiene, but his skin was naturally tan and lovely. He traced his finger around the shapes of his muscles and spine. 

“That feels _really_ good.”

“Yeah?” 

Sorey nodded. 

As Mikleo traced more shapes into his back, his mind wandered to last night. He wished they could stay in bed all day and figure out how best to touch each other. 

Then Sorey turned and hugged him tight. “I’ll miss you today.”

It nearly swept Mikleo off his feet. He had to ground himself on the shower mat. One of them was going to get injured eventually if they kept knocking each other off balance like this.

But Sorey was in control and pinned him to the back of the shower with a kiss, maybe too forceful. Mikleo’s head thudded against the tile behind them. He pulled back, looking apologetic. “I want to be with you again.”

“I’ve got a little time,” Mikleo said, smirking. Sorey was taken by his forwardness and backed off a touch. He loved that--when he could surprise Sorey or rile him. 

He thought back to what Sorey liked last night, how he’d urged the sound of his voice out of him. 

He leaned against Sorey to whisper against his ear. “Sometimes, all I have to do is think about you.”

Sorey swallowed hard. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Mikleo folded his arms around Sorey’s neck to keep him there, in his grasp.

“And um,” Sorey started to say. He cleared his throat. He’d surely be blushing to his ears if his face wasn’t already red from the hot water. “When you’re, uh, doing something about it, would you ever say my name? A little bit?”

“ _Sorey_. Like that?” 

“Ah…”

It started out as a tease, but now Sorey was quite visibly aroused, and Mikleo didn’t want to stop. He could never have dreamt he’d say things like this, but each word emboldened him with the confidence that Sorey wanted him, that he could reduce him to a trembling mess with nothing else but his voice. “When I touch myself, I imagine I’m inside you--and that you like it.”

Sorey grasped him tightly and his words came out almost like sobs against his cheek. “I would, I want you to… to do that...” 

“Sometimes, I--” Mikleo took a deep breath. “Sometimes I fuck myself with my fingers trying to imagine what it would feel like if it were you inside of me.”

“Mikleo _please_ \-- I can’t wait, I need you _right now_.” 

“Come here.”

Mikleo guided Sorey to the tile wall behind him and knelt. Sorey whimpered something about this being unfair, but Mikleo wouldn’t hear it. He closed his lips around Sorey’s now very erect cock and slid it deeper into his mouth. 

Sorey pressed his back against the smooth tile and groaned at the sudden physical contact. Mikleo wondered if in the hot shower, if his mouth would feel as warm or as wet as Sorey’s had in bed. It didn’t seem to be lacking much, judging by Sorey’s reaction. His nails were digging against the tile.

Inexperienced, moving too fast, he choked and let off to take a breath through his nose. Sorey’s size was larger in his mouth than he’d anticipated. He could taste bitterness gathering at the back of his throat, but didn’t stop. If it was for Sorey, then he’d make it sweet in his mind. Sorey sighed and moaned.

“I’m close,” he said in a heavy breath.

Mikleo squeezed Sorey’s thigh to let him know the message was received, and that he intended to finish. He’d been so scared to let Sorey do the same, but now he would endure any discomfort to see him pliant in release.

“Mikleo,” he groaned, and he repeated it louder as he came, his whole body shuddering.

He tried to hide how he gagged as it filled his mouth, and let it fall from his lips as he slid off easily, letting Sorey’s orgasm peak and subside. He coughed to clear his throat. 

Sorey panted. “You didn’t have to do that,” he said, trying to catch his breath.

Mikleo rinsed his mouth in the shower water and looked back at him, satisfied in his own way. “I wanted to.” He spat a stream of clean water from his pursed lips like a fountain, hitting Sorey’s chest.

“Ew,” Sorey laughed, and pulled him close again. “I need to get you back, now.”

Mikleo grinned, knowing it would frustrate him. “I’m afraid there just won’t be time.”

“You’re awful!”

He gave Sorey one last wet kiss on the nose and wrestled his way out of his arms to exit the shower. With a towel wrapped around his hips, he poked his head back in. “You’ll have to think about how you’re going to repay me while I’m at work.”

Sorey turned the water off. “I’ve got a few ideas already.” 

They dried themselves and then it was time for Mikleo to get dressed and go. Even though he’d woken up earlier than usual, he was going to have to hurry. But it was worth it all for that moment with Sorey. 

He grabbed a cereal bar and hoped to get a coffee when he met Lailah at work. Sorey joined him at the door, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt.

“Aren’t you going back to sleep?”

“Not today,” he said, smiling brightly. “Just come home after work, okay? Don’t keep me waiting too long.” 

With that, he kissed Mikleo goodbye, and at 8AM it felt like the day was already perfect.

\- -

While Mikleo was gone, Sorey had a plan. He walked to the bookstore and back, picking up an application at every business along the way. He really wished the pet store would call him. He’d love that job for sure. 

It felt so weird to have done that in his morning shower, like he had a little secret--and this one he could actually keep. He’d protect his unique knowledge of Mikleo with his life. The weather was still cold out, but he felt warm as ever. 

At the bookstore he sat down in the cafe and filled out the applications with a coffee to keep him awake. It didn’t taste as good as when Mikleo used to make his, but he knew he was spoiled, having an ex-barista at home making coffee to his taste. 

This took about an hour or so, and he was back down the street handing them all in.

He stopped inside the corner store along the way. Suddenly he was noticing all the bath products he’d never looked twice at before, and wondered if he should turn up his grooming game a notch for Mikleo’s sake. It might help to look sharp if he went to some interviews anyway, so he figured it was time to advance beyond the all-in-one shower gel.

Even after all that, Mikleo still wouldn’t be home for another few hours. There wasn’t much else to do but school work. He sat on the couch and started reading his text books. There weren’t any assignments due, but he always got excited about the subjects he studied and jumped ahead.

\- - 

“Well you’re in a good mood,” Lailah said, handing Mikleo a fresh coffee. “It’s so early, I thought you’d be a grumpy Guss.”

“I had a good weekend.” His stomach grumbled loud enough that Lailah made a face at it. “I guess I should have eaten more, though.”

“Have a muffin,” she said, opening a half-dozen box she’d brought in. “Come on, then! Let’s work hard today so we can go home and enjoy Sunday night, okay?”

“Exactly what I was thinking.” Mikleo bit into a blueberry muffin and savored the streusel topping for just a moment before returning to his work.

\- -

It wasn’t a long day after all, with two people on the job. The additional hours didn’t earn him a lot of extra money, maybe forty dollars, but he expected that his service to Lailah would pay off eventually in other ways. 

He hadn’t felt so rested in a long time. Even after several hours at work, he still had energy to spare. As he walked home, he started to make plans for dinner in his head. His mind wandered back to Sorey again, how much he’d liked making him feel good. Not just in the obvious way, but in how they had washed each other. The winter air made him long for that hot water and the touch of skin even more.

He unlocked the door to their apartment and was surprised not to have Sorey greeting him, no sound of the TV or smell of food. As soon as he entered he saw why. Sorey was fast asleep sitting on the couch, his head tossed over the back of it, mouth wide open and snoring, with a book open in his lap and a pen still in his hand.

Mikleo tried not to wake him as he closed and locked the door. He removed his coat and shoes carefully, and returned to the couch. He lifted the pen and the book out of Sorey’s hands, and set them down on their cheap plastic coffee table. 

Sorey’s eyes cracked open as Mikleo sank into the couch beside him. They were puffy and red like he hadn’t slept in a week.

He yawned and put his arm around Mikleo’s waist. “Welcome home.”

“You don’t have to wake up,” Mikleo said. “You got up so early on my account. I told you to go back to bed, you know.”

“I want to sleep at the same time as you from now on,” Sorey said, mumbling through his unintelligible daze. His nose nuzzled against Mikleo’s hair as he gave him a sleepy kiss on the head. “I was waiting for you to get home, I really want to do something special for you.”

Mikleo shook his head and laughed in dismay. “We’ll worry about that tonight, okay? It’s okay to take a nap.” He leaned back on the couch’s armrest and pat his chest. “Come here, lay down with me.”

It didn’t take much convincing. Sorey laid his head against Mikleo’s chest and curled his legs up on the opposite end of the couch. He was heavy but so warm, Mikleo didn’t mind him acting as a blanket.

Once they were snug and comfortable, Sorey was close to sleep again. Mikleo dug his fingers into his hair, softer than usual after he’d taken the care to use his own products on him that morning. His skin was warm against his fingertips and he smelled of clean shampoo.

“That feels like heaven,” Sorey sighed against his arm. 

“Yeah?” He continued petting him, working the sides of his head and the back of his neck, massaging his fingers into the scalp. 

“Uh-huh.” 

He felt Sorey’s chest expand as he drew in a breath, felt him release it slowly, relaxed.

“No matter how hard you work, you always take care of me.”

“Can’t help it if you’re a mess.”

“Mm, don’t be mean.”

The last few words barely made it out of Sorey’s mouth, listless and run together. Then he was breathing deep, steady breaths. It was mid-afternoon and the sunlight was still filtering in through the curtains over the living room window. 

Mikleo didn’t mind if he wasn’t tired enough to nap. This is how he wanted to spend his Sunday.


	17. Chapter 17

"Uh..." Rose held the monotone response. Sorey waited on the phone, hoping she would come out of her stupor with some helpful advice. "So if you're broke, what are you going to do for Valentine's Day?"

"Valentines Day?" 

He could hear Rose groan on the other end of the line. "Did you not think about it until now?"

"I kind of forgot it was a thing. I've never had to think about Valentine's Day before." That realization was one of dreamy wonderment over how much his life had changed, until he remembered Valentine’s Day was the 14th. It was currently the 7th. He slapped his palm against his forehead. "It's next Friday!"

"Yeah. What's your plan?"

"My mom doesn't put money into my account until the 15th. I could ask her to do it early, but it would make me feel bad. I already promised her I'd get a job, and I haven't found one."

"So I guess that means you won't take a loan from me, either."

"No, I just can't. Not for this."

She sighed. "Well, there are things you can do that don't cost money, you know."

That brought to memory the things he had made his mom in grade school. "I don't want to give him some kinda lame card made out of dry macaroni like a little kid."

She sighed again. "Not what I meant."

"Well what do you mean, then?"

"Light some candles, rub his shoulders--you know, just do some romantic crap."

Sorey grimaced, wondering if Mikleo would ever sit still and let him do that. Knowing Mikleo, he'd already planned ahead some kind of five course meal and mastered shiatsu by now, he was always so over prepared.

He heard the door creak as Mikleo got home from his last class of the day. He hung his coat and took off his shoes, looking exhausted as always at the end of a long day.

"Welcome home!" He cupped the cell phone as he called it out so as not to be screaming it at Rose.

Mikleo plopped on the couch. "Who are you talking to?"

Sorey stood in the middle of the living room where he’d stopped mid-pace with the phone against his ear. "It's Rose!"

Rose laughed. "I'll let you go. And you're letting me buy you lunch at our usual meet-up, got it?"

"Bye, Rose!"

He ended the call and sat down next to Mikleo. "You look tired," he said. "I hope you don't have to work tomorrow." 

"No extra hours this weekend," Mikleo sighed, kicking his feet up. "I could always use them, but I'm glad."

"Me, too. You're working yourself ragged."

Mikleo smiled and leaned his head on to Sorey's shoulder. "Lailah gave me next Friday off, so it'll be a short week."

"Oh." He tried to hide his distress at the thought of Mikleo having all day to spoil him, and being unable to do much in return. "Valentine's Day, huh?"

"I think it's kind of a dumb holiday, but it's the first one I'll actually be with you for, so..." He lifted his head and smiled even though his eyes were ringed with dark circles. "And I figured you'd be all about cheesy stuff like that."

"You won't spend a lot of money on me though, right?"

Mikleo pulled away and narrowed his eyes at him. "I've been working really hard since the new year, so I thought maybe I could splurge a little."

Sorey groaned. He didn't know how else to say it. "Mikleo, I'm totally broke."

"What?" Mikleo's eyes went wide as he straightened up in his seat. "Are you okay? Did you overdraft your account? Do you need help?"

"No, no, I'll be fine." He put his hands on Mikleo's shoulders to stop him from getting up to check his phone or his computer or whatever he was about to do to rush to his aid. "I just can't spend any money until the 15th, so Valentine's Day is kinda..."

Mikleo folded his arms over his chest and huffed. "You made me think you were in some kind of serious financial trouble."

"Well no, my family always bails me out if I have a serious problem, or if I can't afford my school books, or whatever, but I'd be too embarrassed to ask them for help for a personal expense like, you know, a dozen roses and a heart box of chocolates for my boyfriend."

"Pft." He turned his nose up in a huff. "You don't need to get me something so useless and silly." 

"It's not silly." It stung a that Mikleo wasn't into the idea, at least a little bit. "I don't want you to just do stuff for me like you always do."

Mikleo crossed his arms. He continued to hold his nose up in indignation, and normally Sorey would find that cute. But this time it seemed like they were having a real disagreement.

"I thought you liked it."

"Uhg." Frustrated, Sorey ran his hand through his hair. "Of course I do, but you work all day and come home and cook me dinner and you're so tired, then you're off to work the next morning, and all I do around here is put dishes in the machine like a little kid!"

Mikleo bristled for a moment. Sorey hadn't realized his tone had gotten louder, and took a deep breath to calm himself. 

Mikleo cooled off, too. "Is that why you're trying to find a job?"

"Yeah, I guess it is." He sighed. "If I could work, and you didn't have to, then I wouldn't feel bad if you wanted to cook and spoil me all the time. But when you're doing everything and you come home all tired and I can't do anything help, I feel so useless."

"I guess I have been mothering you a little," Mikleo said. "It's just how I...". He grumbled under his breath. "Never mind."

"No, come on, tell me what you're thinking."

"If I didn’t say it, it’s because I don’t want to!" Now Mikleo's voice was raised. He brought himself back down a notch. "Sorry."

Sorey shook his head. "It's okay. I'd rather you scream it at me than hold it in."

"I'll tell you when I figure out how to put it," Mikleo said. "Until then, it'll be better if you don't push me."

"Ha ha, yeah, I know that much at least. You’ll get really irritated, and not in the cute way."

 

“Are you admitting to riling me on purpose?”

“Only when it's funny, I promise.”

Mikleo merely wrinkled his nose up at him and let it go. "Work is really stressful right now," he said. "And I made a B on one of my tests."

 

“A B? Say it isn't so.”

“It's a big deal for me, okay?” He huffed air through his nostrils in indignation, like a cat that needed to sneeze.

"Well that settles it." Sorey stood up and put his hands on his hips, determined. "No work for you tonight, and tomorrow is for relaxing. We can study on Sunday."

"Actually..."

Mikleo's voice had a lilt to it like he was teasing. He tapped his chin. Sorey turned, eager to know what idea could have put him back into a good mood. 

"Since you don't have any money for a gift, how about..."

"Gosh, you look cute right now."

Mikleo frowned, but it was back to the kind of annoyed look that Sorey could deal with. 

He crossed his arms over his chest and smirked. "How about you do all the chores, for a whole week, and that can be your present for me."

"That sounds great!" It was exciting just to think about taking care of everything Mikleo normally did for a whole week straight. "But can you really let go of the reigns? There's got to be some kind of penalty if you break the rules."

"There's also got to be a fallback if you can't do it."

"You act like I've never lived by myself. I can do things, you just never let me.”

He ignored that. "If you manage to successfully do it to my satisfaction, I'll do something special for you. And, I suppose if I mess up I'll get a penalty, too."

"If you slip and do a chore, then you have to let me do something extra special for you."

"Agreed." 

Mikleo was trying to look like he was working out a settlement deal, but he couldn't hide the playfulness behind it.

Sorey knelt on the floor and took a moment just to look up at Mikleo, admiring his eyes and his smile. "You’re pretty confident, aren’t you?"

Mikleo leaned forward, hands on his knees, refusing to give Sorey the satisfaction of flustering him. "I thought you were about to make dinner." 

Sorey gave him a peck before getting back to his feet. "Right away, dear!"

\---

 

Mikleo woke before Sorey, that was usual. He didn't get out of bed on Saturdays until at least ten. 

Sleeping in the same bed had lost its sense of urgency. It no longer had the desperation of savoring every waking moment. In a way that was better, rather than agonizing over their parting every morning. 

Mikleo watched Sorey's sleeping face for just a moment, brushing a piece of hair away from his forehead. That was all he needed, and he could leave Sorey to sleep in late with the promise that he'd always be there when Mikleo returned.

He thought about that, pouring cereal and milk into a bowl. He was overworked and that was true, but his anxieties about loneliness and money were at ease. His employer liked him, and he'd made new friends. For the first time in several years, he felt like nothing was about to fall out from under his feet. He wasn’t as jittery, he didn’t get headaches as often.

He started to eat while standing at the counter in the kitchen. Maybe it was the crunch of the cereal in his mouth that muffled the sound of Sorey getting out of bed. He almost jumped to find him standing in the kitchen doorway behind him when he turned around.

"Mik-le-o," he said in a sing-song tone, still groggy. "You broke the rules!"

"What?"

"I'm supposed to be doing all the chores, and that includes breakfast."

"It's just cereal," Mikleo laughed. "It's not like I made you any." 

"And what were you about to do with that bowl, huh?"

"Put it in the dishwasher?"

"Wrong!" Sorey clapped his hands together and then pointed accusingly. "You're supposed to leave it in the sink for me to rinse and put away later!"

Mikleo looked at him flatly. "You really just want to penalize me, don't you?"

Sorey smirked and wrapped his arms around Mikleo, rubbing his cheek against him like a puppy. "Yep, now get back in bed so I can properly claim restitution."

"Fine."

"And afterwards, you're going to sleep in like a normal overworking human on his day off."

"I don't know about that."

\---

Later, it was Mikleo in the bed alone, a strange turn of events. He didn't mind. Sorey's ministrations had left him groggy and ready to sleep in.

They were still exploring, enjoying the slow pace of their intimate development. Mikleo had started allowing Sorey to finish with his mouth, and that had been a big step for him. 

It left him satisfied and glowing. Even the bed beneath him and the pillows under his head seemed deeper and softer in the wake of it.

 

There was a different smell on their pillows. Sorey was using a new kind of shampoo. 

He drifted in and out of sleep, but couldn't block out the sound of Sorey banging and clanging who-knows-what around as he went about cleaning the apartment.

It made Sorey so happy just to please Mikleo and see to his every need. He felt he could never deserve such a luxury. He knew that Sorey would scold him for such a negative thought. But it wasn't so much that Mikleo felt little of himself, as much as he felt so highly of Sorey that the gap was hard for him to cross.

Maybe that was what he had been trying to say the night before, but not quite. 

He could smell food cooking. His cereal had been interrupted and he was already hungry again.

He grabbed the nearest article of clothing, which happened to be one of Sorey's shirts. It was soft and hung down to his knees like a nightgown. 

With it only half buttoned, he walked to the kitchen to inspect. Sorey was flipping a grilled cheese.

"Almost lunch time!" He called out over his shoulder. "Don't worry, I made vegetables, too."

Mikleo saw a salad sitting in a bowl with cut tomatoes and spinach leaves. "Good job."

"Must be great if you're actually praising me, right?"

Mikleo opened his mouth to counter that, but wasn't sure what to say. There was no way to express the worth Sorey held to him. “It’s not terrible.”

Sorey flipped the stove off and removed the sandwiches from the pan. When he turned to look at Mikleo, his mouth dropped open.

"You look really good in my shirt."

Mikleo smirked. "I thought you might say that."

"You buttoned it wrong."

"Oh no, is that a penalty?"

Sorey laughed. "Fortunately for you, I am all out of summary judgements until later in the day."

"You should have been a law student."

"Ha ha, well I get enough argument out of you as it is." He ruffled Mikleo’s unbrushed hair.

They sat at the table, in chairs side by side. Mikleo bit into his sandwich. It was perfectly crisp. "See, you're good at this once you focus on it."

"Well, I've got a good motivation this time."

Mikleo smiled.

"Are you enjoying the lazy life? It's almost noon and you haven't dressed."

"Are you complaining?"

"Not at all. Not sure if I can focus on work if you wear that, though."

"It's about time for you to take a break."

Sorey yawned, and put his arm around Mikleo on the way down. "I would be up for some lazy cuddling in bed, yeah." 

"Teach me your lazy ways."

Sorey kissed his cheek. "I gladly will."

 

\- --

Mikleo arrived early to the school offices on Monday and began sorting the workload for Professor Lailah. She entered the room to find him diligently at work, and smiled.

“Mikleo, you look so refreshed!”

“Huh?” Mikleo looked up from the computer screen as Lailah set a coffee and a muffin beside him. For once he wasn’t starving, because Sorey made sure to be up with him and pour him the most dramatic bowl of cereal with sliced bananas he’s ever had in his life. “Thanks, I’ll save it for lunch.”

“Are you using a new eye cream?” Lailah really wasn’t going to do any work until they discussed this. “Did you start a new diet? Or stop one? Please tell me your secret!”

Mikleo exhaled loudly in annoyance. “I have an unemployed boyfriend.”

Lailah sat down in her office chair and slid on its wheels over to him. “So things are going well between you and Sorey? That’s wonderful! I’m so happy for you both.”

With a drop of his hands against the keyboard, he turned to scowl at her. “I like to keep my private life private, okay? Work started ten minutes ago.”

“Okay, okay!” With one last giggle, she slid back over to her desk and began to look at her piled up paperwork from the weekend. 

“Just let me know if you know of any job openings.” Mikleo returned to his data. “Sorey is just as capable as I am at this.”  
“Of course, I know that. The problem is, Mikleo, you’re so efficient you’re already doing all the work I have available. I’ll have to check with some of my associates and see if they need any help.”

“Thanks, I know he’ll appreciate it if you can find something.”

She looked up again, concerned now. “You two are all right financially, though?”

“Yeah, I think it’s more of a pride thing.”

He really wished he’d not said that as soon as it came out of his mouth, because Lailah was sliding back over. “Mikleo! Let’s have dinner tonight so you can tell me about your man problems!”

“No!” 

“Aww…”

He took a deep breath and rubbed his head. “I mean, I’ll go to dinner with you, but I told you that stuff is private.”

\- -

On the way home from his day of school and work, Mikleo found himself pretty exhausted despite the good start that morning. He was looking forward to a clean apartment and maybe an apron-wearing Sorey cooking dinner. It was possible he might get used to this after all.

He unlocked the door and stepped inside to find piles of clothes, folded, and stacked up on the living room floor. There was also a broom lying against the wall and the vacuum cleaner was out.

Sorey was in the kitchen, and was busy trying very hard not to burn something. “Sorry about the mess!” he said. “I got a late start on cleaning and then I lost track of time and I realized you’d be home soon so I had to get to work cooking and I kind of left all that stuff out!”

Mikleo stepped into the kitchen before even taking off his shoes or his jacket. Sorey sounded hurried, his voice was panicked. “Calm down,” he said, and intervened to turn down the heat of the eye that was turned up too high. “Once it’s seared, you can reduce to temperature so it won't burn before it's done all the way through.”

“Ah, okay!”

“You know it’s when you get nervous that you mess up, right? You don’t have to worry about having food on the table the second I come through the door.” He laughed to himself. “Seriously, Sorey. Taking this a bit far, aren’t you?”

Sorey sighed, crisis averted. “I thought I’d have a go at cooking something in the pan, but I’ve never really done it before. The flame is kind of finickey, isn’t it?”

“Our stove isn’t the most high tech, the gas is a pain to mess with.”

“So it wasn’t really my fault about the fire that time, was it?”

Mikleo wasn’t sure he’d go that far. “Well…” He decided changing the subject would be better. “You did a lot of work today. But you really don’t need to do it all at once.”

Sorey beamed a brilliant smile and leaned in for his usual hug and kiss. “I thought it would be fun to surprise you with everything being totally, sparkling clean!” He looked around the incomplete jobs and rubbed at the back of his head, leaning away. “But I didn’t get all the way done…”

“It’s fine. You can finish tomorrow, you know?” He went to sit down at the table, and trusted Sorey to finish the cooking from there. “What are you making besides the chicken?”

“Broccoli and potatoes,” Sorey said, “but it’s just the ready-made ones. I didn’t think I’d have time to peel and boil real ones.”

“That’s fine. It sounds good.” 

He took out one of his books to study while Sorey was finishing up with dinner. There was a test soon, and he wanted to go over all the information as many times as possible just to make sure he retained all of it.

It wasn’t long before Sorey served, and the two had another nice meal together.

\- -

The week passed quickly, as Sorey was keeping himself busy. The cleaning didn’t take as much time as he thought it would. Once it was all done, he only needed to keep up with the regular things like making sure his laundry went in the basket instead of on the floor, and wiping down surfaces after he prepared meals. It was the cooking that was taking up the most time.

But tonight was Valentines Day night, and Sorey was off the hook, as per their arrangement. He had school that afternoon, and that meant coming home that night to whatever Mikleo had prepared for him.

On the way back to the apartments, he ran into Rose and Alisha. They were dressed up nicely, both wearing roses in their lapels. Sorey still wasn’t sure if they were dating, or if it was a casual affair, but he wasn’t too surprised to see them together.

“Sorey!” Rose shouted, but he was already well within earshot on the corner. 

“Hi Sorey,” Alisha said, at a normal volume. “We’re going drinking tonight, would you and Mikleo like to join us?”

“Oh, uh…” Sorey wasn’t sure how to excuse himself. “Mikleo and I have… you know, plans.”

Alisha smiled and laughed chiperly. “Ah, right! Don’t let us intrude.”

Rose leaned into Sorey. She had already started with the drinking, it seems like. Like with the shouting, it seemed like she meant to whisper, but it was loud enough for Alisha to clearly hear it, too. “You’re gonna get laid, right?” That was followed with some elbow nudging and, “Eyy?”

“I prefer not to specify,” Sorey said, blushing.

“Rose, please.” Alisha pulled her away. “It’s fortunate that we ran into you, because we drove down here and we were hoping maybe we could park our car inside your apartment’s parking lot and leave it overnight? Then we can get a ride home and I don’t have to be a designated driver.”

“Sure, let me get you a guest pass from inside first so they don’t tow it or anything.”

“We’re pretty close to it, right?”

Sorey pointed Alisha to the tall building a block away. “That’s us right down there.”

“Great!”

\- -

The three of them walked the rest of the block back to Sorey and Mikleo’s apartment. It was kind of nice weather, a bit warmer as they got closer to spring, and going out wouldn’t have been a bad idea if he had any money. He just hoped Mikleo hadn’t gone to too much trouble.

Rose and Alisha followed them to his door, and he began to unlock it. He called out as he opened the door. “Mikleo, I’m home! Rose and Alisha just need--”

He stopped short before Alisha and Rose could even push their way inside. Mikleo was standing in their hallway wearing the maid costume from last Halloween, and desperately trying to cover himself with the tray in his hands. He was mortified and just as frozen as Sorey was upon realizing how much shorter it seemed than he remembered.

Rose unaware of what the holdup was for, pushed past and caught just a glimpse of Mikleo before he ducked into the kitchen to hide. But the counter only came up about waist height and he was having a hard time completely disappearing.

“Yep.” She slapped Sorey on the back. “You’re gettin’ laid, thas’ a fact.”

It seemed to take Alisha a moment to come out of her stunned state as well, grabbing Rose by the shoulder. “O-On second though, we’ll just go park at the mall!” her voice squeaked as she pulled Rose back through the door. “It’s not like anybody wants to steal Rose’s awful car anyway!” 

She pulled an inebriated Rose quickly out of the apartment and began speed-walking with her down the street. Rose complained loudly all the way.

Sorey shut the door and turned back towards Mikleo. He felt pretty embarrassed now himself, so he couldn’t imagine what Mikleo must feel like. “You look really cute.”

Mikleo growled angrily at him from the kitchen. “Shove it, Sorey.”

“Ah! I really like it though! I just wish you’d let me warn you first.”

He tread carefully into the kitchen, finding Mikleo curled up facing the corner where the refrigerator was. “So embarrassing.”

“Are you okay?” He had established by now that if Mikleo was on edge like this, the best thing was to give him time. He stood in the kitchen with him to let him know that he was there, but he didn’t attempt to give him a reassuring hug, as much as he wanted to. “If it’s any consolation, I don’t think Rose will remember by the time they’re done drinking.”

Mikleo chuckled and turned away from the corner. He was a little red in the face still, but compared to their last embarrassing incident, he was handling it well. He pouted at Sorey. “Why would you bring people over?” It was too cute to be menacing.

“I know, that was dumb.” Sorey sighed. “I just never thought in a million years that you’d be willing to do anything like this for me.”

That brought Mikleo’s blush back. “O-of course I would…”

Sorey had been so distracted by Mikleo’s short dress and apron, he hadn’t even noticed the spread of food on the counter. There were steaks and mashed potatoes--real ones made from scratch--with a hand prepared sauce and asparagus. At the end, there was a glazed chocolate cake with strawberries on top.

Mikleo began peeling his gloves, and not in a sexy way. “Sorry, I just don’t think I can go through with this after all that.” 

“It’s okay.” Sorey felt the tension pass. He pulled Mikleo to him and kissed his forehead. “At least I got to see you in it again. We can save it for later, when you’re feeling less exposed.”

“Ruined the surprise, though.”

Sorey laughed. “No, I think I was pretty surprised.” He pulled Mikleo into a hug and rubbed his back. “What if you go change into the cutest flannel pajamas you have, and then we can dig into this awesome food you made.”

Mikleo buried his head against Sorey’s chest. “Thanks.”

\- -

Sorey felt like giving Mikleo the privacy to change had been a good idea. As much as he wanted to examine the fit of that costume up close, and remove it piece by piece, he was more concerned that Mikleo felt comfortable.

He didn’t take long, and came to the table in some blue and white striped pajamas. Almost as good. Maybe there was still a chance to save the romantic feeling after all.

Sorey had gone ahead and set the food on the table and arranged the utensils to serve themselves. 

“Thanks,” Mikleo said again. “I’m okay. I don’t mind it with you, but when they saw me, I just…”

“No need to explain.” Sorey lifted a heaping portion of the potatoes and put them on Mikleo’s plate for him, since he knew he liked those. “Come on, eat up!”

Mikleo began to nibble at his plate. “And thanks for, um…” He pushed potatoes and asparagus around. “You’re always very careful when I’m freaking out like that. I never really talked with you about it, but I like how you give me my space when I need it.”

“Of course.” Sorey finished chewing a bite of the rich, tender steak. “I don’t want you to feel worse, you know?”

He felt the gentle weight of Mikleo’s head against his shoulder. “I think I know what I was trying to say,” he said. “Do you remember? About a week ago.”

“I remember we were arguing a little, but we worked it out.”

“Doing all this, like the cooking and cleaning,” Mikleo started. “Well, I’ve told you before that I can’t do all the things that I’d like to. I can’t protect you, and I don’t make enough money to provide for you--”

“It sounds like you’re saying some nonsense again, Mikleo.”

“Just let me finish, okay?”

“Of course, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I’ll just keep shoving this delicious food in my face.”

Mikleo smiled and sat up straight again before he continued. “When I can cook and clean, it makes me feel like I’m taking care of you. It doesn’t feel domestic, or subservient I guess, for me. It makes me feel stronger. Because you’re so strong, and I can take care of you.”

Sorey put down his fork for a second to savor the tender beef, and try to digest what Mikleo was saying. “Just because I work out doesn’t mean I’m strong.” He shook his head. “That’s the part I don’t get at all. Anybody can go to the gym. You’re strong, because you endure all this work even when we don’t have money, and you make all these connections with people. You’re so driven.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Well, what do you mean?”

“You always have a smile even when things are bad. That smile you have is what keeps me together when I am falling apart on the inside. You never put your problems on other people, and you do everything you can to help anyone who is in need. You keep chasing your dream, and I want to take care of you so that you can continue to do those things. That’s what makes me feel strong.”

Sorey laughed. “We’re being so sappy tonight.”

“Well, it is Valentine’s day.”

He looked at Mikleo, and he was smiling back at him with those bright eyes that Sorey loved. All the awkwardness from before was gone. “Just let me help out,” he said. “I won’t take over your job or anything.”

“I think I can handle that.”

Sorey pretended to yawn and slipped his arm over Mikleo’s shoulders. Mikleo scoffed at the pretense. “What do you say?” He smirked and pecked Mikleo’s cheek with a kiss. “Can I attempt to feed you those chocolate strawberries in a sexy manner, or should we just watch TV?”

“I think maybe we can do a little of both."


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any formatting/spelling issues, I wrote this from my phone and it’s hard to correct the weird auto spacing, punctuation. and stuff that it does.

Mikleo woke in his bed, in his room. He’d been so sleepy after watching two movies that he’d fallen asleep on the couch again, and Sorey must have carried him to his room. But there was no Sorey in his bed with him currently. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, grumbling.

Too grumpy to bother looking for his glasses, he shuffled down the hall to look in Sorey’s room. No Sorey there, either. He squinted his eyes at Sorey’s wall clock. It was 9 am. A normal time for Mikleo to be awake of his own volition, but not so much for Sorey.

He fumbled around for a robe to wear over his pajamas and began looking for his phone to text Sorey, but couldn’t remember where he’d put it. He found it in his school bag. 

“Where are you?” He typed.

A response came only a few seconds later. “At the store, back soon.”

He groaned. Sorey would get a little money in his bank today, but it wasn’t like him to go grocery shopping alone. He must be off buying something silly to make up for last night.

It hadn’t gone exactly as planned, but he didn’t mind how it had turned out. He was just worried that Sorey didn’t get any “payoff” so to speak.

Just as he was contemplating going back to bed, there was a knock at the door. He found it odd since Sorey wouldn’t knock, and he hadn’t made plans to see anyone this weekend, especially not so early.

He tied his robe and smoothed his hair out as much as he could before opening the door. No one was there, but a box had been left on the doorstep. It had no address, but just an envelope taped to the top that said “For Mikleo, not to be opened by Sorey.”

“Well I don’t hear any ticking,” he grumbled to himself and picked up the box. It wasn’t very heavy and the contents shuffled a little inside when moved, but they didn’t sound like glass or anything that could be dangerous. He looked around and couldn’t see anything else out of the ordinary.

Back inside and with the door shut, he peeled the envelope away from the box and read it. 

“Dear Mikleo,

I wanted to apologize for the awkward situation last night. I promise you that it’ll remain between you and me, since Rose was already drunk and doesn’t remember.

I noticed you were wearing plain shoes (because I was looking down, of course). So to show you there’s nothing to be ashamed of, I am gifting you this pair of shoes that I ordered that happened to be too big for me, but they seem like they’d fit you. 

If you don’t like them, just send them into a donation bin and we shall never speak of this again. 

Your Friend,  
Alisha Diphda.”

Inside the box was a pair of black shoes with her heels. Mikleo didn’t know a lot about women’s shoes, but they looked more like a cute doll style than the pointed ones Lailah wore to work. The heel wasn’t too tall, either.

He decided that he could take the rest of the weekend to figure out how to respond to this letter, if he should at all. It was Alisha’s best attempt to make him feel better, and he appreciated it, but lingering on the subject only made it even more awkward.

For the time being, he hid the box of shoes in the back of his closet where hopefully no curious Soreys would poke their noses into it.

\- - 

It was another sunny day, cold as it still was. Sorey watched his breath puff as he walked down the street. 

“Hello, puppies!” he said, stopping by the pet store window. They jumped and licked at the glass. “Sorry I can’t stay, I’m going home to a very cute boyfriend who unfortunately is not into dogs.” 

It was not far to their apartment, where he shuffled the bags in his hands for his keys and unlocked the door as stealthily as he could. Once inside, he gently pushed the door shut and placed all but the food he’d brought home on the table.

He carried the bag of take-out and poked his head into Mikleo’s room. He was sitting up in bed, reading a textbook. 

“Aw, you’re awake already.”

Mikleo closed the book and looked up at him from the bed with a stern expression. “What did you get at the store?”

“Got us some breakfast burritos so we can be lazy bums today.”

“Is that all?”

Sorey cleared his throat and started to look all around. He was just no good at hiding stuff. “Got some milk and cereal because we’re low.”

Mikleo rose up on his knees and pulled Sorey by the arm. “Come on, what did you buy?” 

“It’s a surprise!” He leaned down and kissed Mikleo’s cheek. “Come on, breakfast first!” The wrapping was already greasy and translucent is spots when he pulled it out. “Aw yeah, you know it’s good when you can see through the wrap.”

“Healthy,” Mikleo snarled, but the grumble from his stomach gave him away.

“Somebody has a grumpy tummy,” Sorey said in a song-song tone and nudged the unwrapped egg burrito at the corner of Mikleo’s mouth. “Come on, time for breaky wecky!”

Mikleo snatched the wrap out of his hand, glaring at him. His hair was still not combed and he had a little bit of puffiness under his eyes. It was cute.

Sorey laughed and gave him another cheek kiss. “Grumpy.” 

“You’re teasing me and it’s not even 10 am.”

He’d already half consumed the burrito before Mikleo finished the sentence. “I’m just so happy I get to spend all weekend with you,” he said through a mouthful. “I want to go to the park, and the library, and oh, what if we can go to the swap meet and get some cheap stuff?”

“There’s a farmer’s market,” Mikleo said. “But it closes at noon.” 

Sorey stood and threw the blankets off the bed. “Well what are we waiting for?”

Mikleo looked at him, annoyed, as the sheet floated back down. “I’m eating.”

“Burritos are tubular foods meant for mobile consumption,” Sorey said. “Here, let me get some clothes out for you and some shoes—“

“I can pick my own clothes!”

Sorey laughed and tickled Mikleo until he was up and out of bed. Mikleo started to tickle back, and Sorey figured he should drop it or else they’d never get to the shops on time.

He let Mikleo get dressed and went back to the kitchen to put away the little bit of groceries he’d bought. Mikleo came out of his room soon with jeans and a long t-shirt on. He stopped at the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth. Sorey joined him there, since the burrito had left him with bad breath.

While they both brushed, Mikleo jabbed him with his elbow. Sorey got him back by pushing his freshly brushed bangs in the wrong direction. They were going to have a fun day.

As they were heading out the door with their jackets on, Mikleo looked back at the suspicious object still inside a shopping bag on the table. “You did get something!”

Sorey held onto his hand right and pulled him toward the door. “Later, or else we won’t get to look at the market, okay?”

Mikleo grumbled, but followed him along.

\- -

 

They got on a city bus that had a stop by the fairgrounds where the market was held, and both realized they had to act like a couple of adults for a few minutes so as not to disturb the other passengers.

Once they stepped back off the bus at their destination, they were poking and nudging each other again until they were both laughing.

“What’s gotten into you today?”

Sorey grinned. “I had such a good night, I’m just really happy today.”

“I thought last night was kind of a disaster.”

“I got to see you in a cute outfit, you made me a really great dinner, and then we watched movies and you fell asleep on my shoulder. I carried you to bed, and you were so soft and cute.”

Mikleo flushed deep red and kept his voice down as they approached the stalls. “So you don’t mind that we didn’t, uh…”

Sorey put his arm around Mikleo’s shoulder as they walked. “We did plenty of things last week,” he laughed softly. “I’m just happy when I get to be with you.”

Mikleo pretended to examine some daikon radishes on the first table they came to, but the way he leaned into Sorey’s arm told him all he needed to know.

The market was bigger than Sorey would have expected, with four long rows lines on both sides with vendors selling produce, livestock, cheese, and even handmade lotions and soaps.

There were a lot of people there too, probably thanks to the nice weather. The sounds of all those people, animals, trucks, machines, and some kind of live music off in the distance created a cacophony that was easy to get lost in. 

He felt like he and Mikleo were in their own little world, despite all the people around. He watched as Mikleo stopped to look through a fence at some goats that were for sale.

“You don’t like dogs, how about a cute baby goat?”

Mikleo scrunched his nose up. “Who said I don’t?”

“You didn’t have to, I can see it on your face every time we pass the pet store.”

“Well they can bite, Sorey.”

“Not if you train them right! Dogs are really sweet.”

It didn’t persuade him. He folded his arms. “People in our situation can’t afford to be responsible for animals, anyway.”

It sounded like he was actually afraid of them and didn’t want to admit how much. That worried Sorey, and he wondered if Mikleo had developed a phobia of dogs because of something serious that had happened to him. He looked around for a way to change the subject. It had been a bad joke, anyway.

“Hey, sweet potatoes,” he said, picking one of the root vegetables up from a big pile at the next stall. “Do you know how to make something with these? They’re super cheap.”

“I don’t, but I could look it up.”

Sorey’s eyes lit up. “Not if I beat you to it.”

“Oh?” The clever smile on Mikleo’s face was a welcome change from the grumpiness from before. “You sure? I can’t pull you out of trouble if I don’t even know how to cook it myself.” 

Sorey tapped him on the nose with the tip of the vegetable. “Just you wait, my sweet potato.”

He rubbed his nose with his sleeve. “Ew Sorey, that might be dirty.”

Sorey laughed and turned to the lady running the shop. “Can I get, uh, six of these?”

“Anything else?”

Mikleo had somehow already gathered more things. “Spinach, kale, a bag of apples, some eggplant—“

“Ah, looks like you wanted to do more shopping than I thought!” 

“Well, it’s cheap here, and the quality is better.”

“Oh no, it’s not a problem. Just, can you get it for me? Here’s thirty dollars, buy as many groceries as you think we can use. I need to use the bathroom.”

“Oh, all right.” Mikleo looked at him skeptically, but that was typical. 

And he was right that Sorey wasn’t really going to use the bathroom. He turned the corner out of sight and found one of the stalls selling handmade goat’s milk soap.

He knew that Mikleo liked lavender, and there was a scent called lavender and sage. It smelled less flowery to him, a little more masculine, maybe. Mikleo would probably appreciate that.

When he met up with Mikleo again, the slim-figured boy was carrying what looked like twice his weight in vegetables. 

“Geez Mikleo!” He quickly grabbed half the bags. “What all did you get? Can we even eat all this before it goes bad?”

“I’ll make soups and freeze them with whatever we can’t eat right away,” Mikleo said. 

“Sounds yummy, especially for cold nights.” He looked at his phone to see the time. “Well, looks like the shops will close soon, and our bus comes on the hour anyway.”

“All right.” Mikleo handed him back a ten dollar bill. “That’s what’s left.”

“Wow, you got all this food for twenty dollars?”

“I told you, it’s cheap here.”

Sorey smiled and pulled the little paper sleeve containing the bar of soap out of his pocket. “I got you this.”

“Sorey,” Mikleo scolded, “I told you…”

“It’s for both of us, sorta. Because I like it when you smell nice.”

Mikleo held it to his nose and inhaled. “It’s good,” he said. “Maybe I’ll give you a wash with it.”

“I certainly won’t object to that, either.”

\- -

They rode the bus home with their arms full of groceries, and even after they took the time to put it all away, it seemed like it was still so early. They had all afternoon to do whatever they wanted.

“Hungry for lunch?” Mikleo asked him from the kitchen. Sorey sat down on the couch. 

“Well, we may as well get started on your mountain of vegetables.”

Mikleo chuckled and got to work making something. Sorey decided not to lay around while his boyfriend and roommate did all the work, and collected all of the laundry from their bins, and the floors of the bathrooms where it tended to pile up. 

He noticed the maid costume crumpled in the corner. It would be a shame to let it get wrinkled, so he folded it neatly and left it on top of Mikleo’s dresser.

It was a short walk to the apartment building’s laundry room, where he started a load and headed back.

Mikleo was already assembling something on a plate. They were little slices of cheese and tomato in between some sautéed zucchini slices and dressed with a sauce that smelled really good.

“Hmm, it looks like it’s good for you. Is it possible that it can it also taste good?”

“Well it doesn’t come in a grease-stained sack, so you be the judge.”

Sorey cut one in half and put it in his mouth. It was flavorful and had a variety of textures from the crispy zucchini to the soft tomato and rich cheese. He gave Mikleo a thumbs up in approval as he stuffed his face with more.

“Don’t eat all of it, it’s for me too!”

Sorry swallowed a bite. “Okay, well take however much you want and I’ll have the rest.”

\- -

 

They finished their lunch and Sorey went to put the dishes in the dishwasher. 

When he turned around, Mikleo had gotten up on his light feet and was reaching for the bag from before. 

“Hey, hey! That’s a surprise.”

Mikleo huffed. “What is it?”

Sorey chuckled. “Ah okay, you got me. I’m not good at surprises, let’s open it now!”

Mikleo took the box out of the bag and looked at the product skeptically. “Um, Sorey…”. He was blushing slightly. “Don’t you think you should have asked me before buying something like this?”

“Why? It’s a massager!”

“I can see that…”. He turned the box over in his hands to look at the other pictures. “Do you think we need something like this?”

“Well, I wasn’t getting very far just using my hands.”

Mikleo’s face got even redder and he was speechless. “W-what?”

“I’m sorry.” Sorey scratched his head. “I thought you would like it? You’re always complaining that your back and feet hurt after your long days, and my rubs don’t seem to be helping.”

Mikleo took a deep breath. “Sorey, this is a personal massager. You know, for women? To pleasure themselves?”

“What? No it isn’t! The lady on the box is using it on her shoulder.”

“That’s so they can sell it in the store. It’s called a wand.”

“No way. Let me see it!”

Mikleo shook his head and peeled off the tape that held the box closed. He fished out the instruction manual and held it to Sorey. “You see?”

Sorey felt his face heat up as he looked at the image of the woman holding the wand to her legs. “Oh gosh, I asked the salesperson for the most powerful one!”

Mikleo tried to cover his mouth and stop himself, but he was snickering. It quickly turned into a full on giggle. “Oh no…”

“Dang it.” Sorey huffed. “So there’s no way for men to use this? Should we just return it?”

“It’s still quite good as a muscle relaxer,” Mikleo said, turning over the object in his hands. “And there are a few things men can do with it.”

“Really? Like what.”

Mikleo was smiling like a cat again. “What if I show you?”

Sorey found himself stuck with a blank mind in response to that statement. Mikleo’s little “how about sex” face completely short circuited his brain.

He stepped forward, closing the space between them, and tapped him on the nose with the wand. “How about that, sweet potato?”

“Yes, let’s do that right now!” He grabbed Mikleo’s hand and pulled him towards his bedroom.”

Mikleo laughed as Sorey all but swept him off his feet. “I guess the park will have to wait for tomorrow then!”

The door slammed shut behind them.


End file.
